New Keats Biography

[Malia]

Many of you may already know of this--I think I remember one or more of you mention the new biography entitled Posthumous Keats. I have found a lengthy, beautifully detailed review of the book that I thought you might like to have a look at. The review ends with part of a stirring poem written from Fanny Brawne's perspective that I will try to find and post in full, if possible. Has anyone purchased this book, btw? Any reviews from those of you who have read it?

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/22735

[BrokenLyre]

Yes, I happen to have Plumly's book but I have not read it yet - lack of time. I will get to it later this summer.
Sorry I can't help anyone.

[Malia]

I went ahead and bought a copy on Amazon.com. It looks like some excellent summer reading I'll give my impressions when I've finished it.

[Saturn]

It was me who posted the news about that new Keats biography.

Unfortunately I haven't been able to find, my local bookshop is rubbish

[BrokenLyre]

I believe I got my copy from Amazon last month. Saturn, can you get it from Amazon?

[Saturn]

No, wish I could, I'm a poor penniless poet. I don't have a credit/debit card, can't purchase stuff online.

Thanks for the idea anyway.

[Malia]

That's too bad, Saturn I think Amazon also has a payment option wherein they take the money straight out of your checking/bank account, if you want to use that. But I generally don't like giving people my routing number. . .still, it is a way (at least here in America).

[riverborn]

I received the book as a Xmas present and it is quite good if you are a Keats fanatic. the first half or so deals with the history of his reputation after his death, and the second part is a very heart-felt and heart rendering renditon of his wasting and death. The biographer draws some interesting parallels to his death to his art (very late 1819?) and his physical death in 1821. I think this is a great quote from the book: "To Autumn," the perfection of Keats mode of disappearance into the text, is not only his last great lyric, it is what we would call the "apotheosis" of elemental conversion- of the earth harvest, yes; of the ending of the fire of the sun; of the arcing anticipation of the spring rain; but mostly of the seperating veil, .....Keats true disappearance as a man and poet begins here, a full year and a half before before he dies. ..the recognition of what has been true and fated for years arrives like a vision, and that vision is "To Autumn", whose emotional and spiritual realities represent both a full cup and exhaustion... it is as if Keats only choice after "To Autumn" is to die, to fail, to disappear completely, perfectly, and leave "no immortal work behind".

I felt in this a profound insight.

The book has a more or less redemptive view of Fanny Brawne, but characterizes Charles Brown as, in the end, a betrayer.