The Correspondence of Edith Wharton and Macmillan, 1901-1930 [Hardcover]

This book publishes, for the first time, some 400 letters between Edith Wharton and her chief London publisher, Macmillan. The correspondence highlights Wharton's well developed understanding of the 'sociology of text' in the early twentieth century, casting new light on Wharton's working practices which will be of crucial importance for scholars.Acknowledgements Abbreviations Note on the Text Note on Exchange Rates Introduction The Complete Correspondence of Edith Wharton and Macmillan, 1901-30, with explanatory notes Appendix: Wharton's Publications with Macmillan Bibliography Index

'The Correspondence of Edith Wharton and Macmillan, 1901-1930 provides all kinds of unexpected insights into the history of English and American publishing whilst illuminating Wharton's relationship with her editors and her public. The volume offers a variety of fascinating snippets, dropped by Wharton in her letters to her British editor: her freelist (those who - sometimes surprisingly - received complimentary copies), a discovery of another incidence of Wharton sniping at Virginia Woolf through a third party (as Wharton complains about Woolf's 'pompous' review of Lubbock's edition of Henry James's Letters) and, most importantly, her proof reading habits and her painstaking attention to punctuation and English spelling.' - Professor Janet Beer, The English Research Institute, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK

'Shafquat Towheed's authoritative, profoundly-researched collection of Edith Wharton's letters to her most valued publisher is not only an important contribution to Wharton Studies and the history of the book, but a fascinating document in the cultural history of a vital period of transition. The letters themselves are a very welcome addition to the Wharton canon; almost equally welcome is Towheed's vivid and entertaining and wonderfully informative Introduction, showing a rich and astute sense of the subtleties of the publishing business, and settlÃ-