Bishop, Elizabeth and Robert Lowell. Words In Air: The Complete Correspondence Between Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell. Ed. Thomas Travisano and Saskia Hamilton. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008. Print.

Content:

This collection of letters chronicles Elizabeth Bishop’s relationship with Robert Lowell from 1947 to 1977. Lowell was, in his own right, a collector and user of letters, even going so far as to use his ex-wife’s letters in his book The Dolphin, and some of Bishop’s own recollections of her mother. To her credit, Bishop never approved of this “confessional” style of poetry, and chose to admonish his method in several of her letters.

The book begins with Robert Lowell’s “For Elizabeth Bishop 4” and proceeds as follows:

• Introduction: “What a Block of Life” by Thomas Travisano

• A Note on the Text and Annotation

• Chronology

• [ONE] 1947--1951

• [TWO] 1951--1958

• [THREE] 1958--1962

• [FOUR] 1963--1970

• [FIVE] 1970--1977

• “North Haven” by Elizabeth Bishop

• Appendix I: First Drafts of Letters from Elizabeth Bishop to Robert Lowell

• Appendix II: Elizabeth Bishop on Robert Lowell

Their letters begin cordially and quickly fall out of their strained formality. Bishop begins calling Lowell “Cal” in their letters, but he won’t tell her why people call him by that particular name, as “none of the prototypes are flattering: Calvin, Caligua, Caliban, Calvin Coolidge, Calligraphy--with merciless irony.” The letters become longer as the years wear on, bringing in more details about their personal lives, and even a few professions of love from Lowell, which Bishop deftly overlooks in her replies. Even so, he began ending his letters “Affectionately” in 1948, a trend Bishop quickly adapted, and progressed to “I miss you” (Lowell) and later to “Love” from both parties around their later correspondences in 1949.

The collection of letters is accompanied by several other notes, mostly from the editors, alerting the reader to the articles and books Bishop and Lowell were reading around the time of each individual letter. They even note literary allusions and whether or not they had particular trouble deciphering either author’s handwriting in the footnotes following a particular letter.

Critical Reaction:

Written for the New York Times' Sunday Book Review column in 2008, this review covers Elizabeth Bishop's book of letters with Robert Lowell, Words In Air. The article details how the two became friends after meeting at a dinner party in 1947, and the book holds the letters they wrote to each other over the course of many months. Lowell was a very "confessional" poet long before he met Bishop and for the 30 years they were friends before he met his end due to a heart attack.

The book holds their surviving 459 letters, detailing their combined and separate struggles as poets and people. Logan notes Bishop being the more rational of the two, placidly ignoring Lowell's written proposals of their marriage-that-might-have-been, choosing instead to keep their friendship uncomplicated by romance. They inspired each other's writing as much as they strove to not emulate each other. Bishop often chastised Lowell for his use of personal letters in his works.

The review notes the entertainment the two received from exchanging the letters, showing readers young and old how important literature and literary connections are to writers of any age.

Logan, William. “I Write Entirely For You.” Sunday Book Review. 2008. BR1. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/02/books/review/Logan-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0