ANCESTOR'S BROCADES : The Literary Debut of Emily Dickinson. By Millicent Todd Bingham. 464 pp. New York and London : Harper and Brothers. Originally published 1945.

This book is the fascinating story of the circumstances attending the first appearance of Emily Dickinson's poetry : the arrival in Amherst in 1881 of the young astronomer David Peck Todd and his sophisticated and beautiful wife, Mabel Loomis Todd; their taking up residence near the two Dickinson households; that of the gentle recluse-poetess Emily and her bleak and arrogant sister Lavinia; and that of their brother Austin and his wife and children; the death of Emily five years later; the discovery by Lavinia of dozens of tiny manuscript-books, and of hundreds of scraps of paper on which lines and poems of varying degrees of legibility were written, many barely decipherable; Lavinia's eager desire to see this material published; her incompetence for the task; her request for help from Mabel Loomis Todd; Mabel's long labor of editing the manuscripts in consultation with her husband and Colonel Higginson; the appearance of the first three volumes as causing a transatlantic furor at their unconventionality; the feud that was simmering in Amherst; its climax, etc., etc.

This is without doubt one of the most interesting books I've read in my studies of Dickinson. Millicent Bingham Todd has an amazing knack of bringing these long-dead people before our eyes and making them live again. Her portrayal, in particular, of her mother, Mabel Loomis Todd, is very compelling. She comes across as a remarkably sane, kind, and intelligent woman, and one sympathizes with her in her feud with the horrible Lavinia. And the story of the difficulties of editing ED's manuscripts, and of getting them published in the teeth of public opinion, the triumph of finally succeeding, the slow but steady growth of ED's popularity, all this was fascinating stuff.

Don't believe what the cultists and ED groupies tell you about Mabel Loomis Todd. She was a truly wonderful and very impressive woman. And it becomes perfectly clear that if it hadn't been for her devotion to the task of editing ED's manuscripts, and her fortitude through many trials and hardships and frustrations, it's entirely possible that ED's poems might never have seen the light of day, and her amazing poems have been lost to the world. ED Cultists can go fly a kite. I think we all owe Mabel Loomis Todd an enormous debt of gratitude.

This book is one of the most impressive pieces of work i have seen regarding this topic. Being one of the most comprehensive works I have read on the subject, I was thoroughly impressed by Browne's work. I look forward to reading more from this impressive writer in the future.

Angelina Grimke is a truly great and powerful woman. Her courage and strength are wonderfully portrayed in this delightful book. The historical record is presented in an exciting format. Too often we believe that there is little we can do to make the world better. The injustice which Angelina Grimke took on threatened the nation. The soul of the American future was at stake. The story of Angelina Grimke renews our faith in the power of the human spirit. She was a remarkable woman. Ellen Todras provides readers, both young and old, with a gripping account of her life and her struggles. The best book I've read in a long time.

Emily Costello writes the best children's books with strong female progtaganits I've ever read! From feisty nine-year old Stella, who has a deep love of animals, to her forest ranger mother and aunt Anya,who is town vet, the women are smart, capable and unflinching in times of stress--models so difficult to find in so many of today's children's books. (The thing I like least about the books are their sappy covers--clearly the publishers think girls will fall for doe-eyed animal caricatures.) The stories, though, wow. Issues surrounding the environment, wildlife awareness, personal responsibility and overcoming stereotypes are all addressed and handled adeptly by Emily Costello, who knows how to tell a story as well. These books are aimed at nine year olds, but I've read almost all of them aloud to my five year old daughter. We are hooked and can't wait for more. Thank you, Emily Costello, I've been looking for you for so long....

What a wonderful book!! The babies are beautiful and the illustrations and photos are terrific. I'm 11 years old and I read it to my little cousins when they come to visit. They love it. Everybody should have one.

If you are interested in expanding your knowledge of artists on this continent (North America), specifically the West Coast, I'd recommend this erudite volume on the work of Emily Carr. Emily Carr was a late-bloomer, but when she found her own she produced haunting canvases of her encounters with Northwest Coast Native Art, specifically totems. This was followed by strong formalized images of the coastal rainforest. Late in her life she painted expressive landscapes. I recently read that a joint exhibit of Emily Carr, Georgia O'Keeffe, and Frida Kahlo "Places of their Own" will be travelling to various venues in 200l/2002.

As always, Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon have produced a great selection of cryptics crosswords. Their clues have just the right amount of cleverness without being too hard to figure out. This book doesn't have any "regular" ones, they each have some kind of an extra twist, so they're all interesting. These have run in the Atlantic Monthly before, but it was before I started doing them in there, so I'm glad for this collection.

Cox and Rathvon make the best variety cryptic crossword puzzles of all. This book is the first collection of their puzzles from The Atlantic Monthly (it pre-dates the collection in the Random House how-to book). Many of the puzzles are simply brilliant in construction -- great clues and spectacular special themes. I've done the entire collection twice (several years apart), and have bought a third copy to do in a few more years. It's simply the best of the best. Get a copy if you can, even though it's out of print!

Emily Dickinson is often a religious poet, and more often than many think, an erotic one. She is famous for her mysteries and contradictions and elusiveness. She died and left more than l700 poems, many almost indecipherable, and a number of them "uncertainly finished." Her sister Vinnie wanted the works to see print, but could not persuade her brother Austin's wife Sue to get the job done, so she turned to Austin's mistress, Mabel, who was also married. This is the lovers' story, told through 13 years of self-justifying letters and diary entries. More importantly, it is the story of how Mabel took on the job of copying and editing the poems to please her lover, and perhaps to irritate her enemy, Sue. Emily became famous about five years after she died due to Mabel's efforts. Polly Longsworth did a fine job condensing love letters and diary entries to give us a picture of these tormented souls, whose relationships all ended badly. The actual love letters between Austin and Mabel clearly show that neither had Emily's literary talent, but both had her passion. Where Emily apparently suppressed carnality, her brother and his "other woman" reveled in it. If you are as fascinated by Emily's life as you are by her poetry, this part of the tale, while largely occurring after she died, is essential to know. A very worthwhile addition to the saga of Emily Dickinson.

"I really liked the way this book presents information about autism and Aspergers in such a clear way for children. Kids will find it easy to read and relate to Emily's story and actual experiences. It's a real treasure for kids who have a brother or sister with high-functioning autism or Aspergers, and a heart-warming read for their parents, too."