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The Wit In The Dungeon: The Life of Leigh Hunt by Anthony Holden
This enchanting biography explores the life of Leigh Hunt, the essayist, critic, poet, and maverick whose circle included Keats, Shelley, Byron, Browning, and Dickens. of photos.
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First published January 20, 2005
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About the author
Anthony Holden
92 books23 followersAnthony Holden is an English writer, broadcaster and critic, particularly known as a biographer of artists.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 21, 2014
Comprehensive and informative. Leigh Hunt so often shows up as a walk-on in the lives of other, more famous people that it's good to have all the information about him pulled together in one volume. It will give you a good idea of what Hunt did and why his life was significant.
I give this four stars rather than five because, despite all the facts that it assembles, it never quite manages to reveal the inner Hunt. Some of that may be down to Hunt. For such a sociable guy, he was hard to get to really know. Even the portraits of him don't always seem to be of the same person. Still, after reading this book, I read "The Young Romantics," by Daisy Hay, and it gave me some of the sense of Hunt as a person that was missing from this book. On the other hand, if I had read only "The Young Romantics," I wouldn't have been able to place the few years of Hunt's life that it covers into any broader context.
In the end, if you have any interest in Hunt -- or even in Hunt's world or Hunt's time -- you pretty much have to read this book.
I give this four stars rather than five because, despite all the facts that it assembles, it never quite manages to reveal the inner Hunt. Some of that may be down to Hunt. For such a sociable guy, he was hard to get to really know. Even the portraits of him don't always seem to be of the same person. Still, after reading this book, I read "The Young Romantics," by Daisy Hay, and it gave me some of the sense of Hunt as a person that was missing from this book. On the other hand, if I had read only "The Young Romantics," I wouldn't have been able to place the few years of Hunt's life that it covers into any broader context.
In the end, if you have any interest in Hunt -- or even in Hunt's world or Hunt's time -- you pretty much have to read this book.
May 22, 2014
See my review on my book blog: http://quirkyreader.livejournal.com/3...
March 29, 2025
An excellent piece of work.
Leigh Hunt's not much read, now, and is chiefly remembered for a couple of much-anthologised poems and for being the basis for Dickens' Bleak House character, the untrustworthy Harold Skimpole - who makes free with other peoples' money and betrays friends while protesting that in matters of business he's no more than a child.
That pen portrait's not altogether unfair, though: Leigh Hunt did always repay money loaned to him, albeit usually very late, and wasn't averse to taking cash as a gift as well.
In his day he was more notable, for two things: firstly as a central figure in literary circles, beginning with Keats, Byron and Shelley, latterly with Tennyson Browning and Dickens. He had wit, charm, charisma and seems to have been completely lovable. (As his enormous brood of children might also go to prove.) Second, he was a prolific, hard-working journalist who in his youth was slung in jail for his hard-hitting views and reporting - hence this book's title.
The sad aspect of the story is that his career and fortunes never recovered from that spell inside, compelling him to write too much too quickly in a desperate, failing struggle for money.
A thorough, well-researched and well balanced piece of work from a latter day journalist with a similar gift for friendship and connection.
Leigh Hunt's not much read, now, and is chiefly remembered for a couple of much-anthologised poems and for being the basis for Dickens' Bleak House character, the untrustworthy Harold Skimpole - who makes free with other peoples' money and betrays friends while protesting that in matters of business he's no more than a child.
That pen portrait's not altogether unfair, though: Leigh Hunt did always repay money loaned to him, albeit usually very late, and wasn't averse to taking cash as a gift as well.
In his day he was more notable, for two things: firstly as a central figure in literary circles, beginning with Keats, Byron and Shelley, latterly with Tennyson Browning and Dickens. He had wit, charm, charisma and seems to have been completely lovable. (As his enormous brood of children might also go to prove.) Second, he was a prolific, hard-working journalist who in his youth was slung in jail for his hard-hitting views and reporting - hence this book's title.
The sad aspect of the story is that his career and fortunes never recovered from that spell inside, compelling him to write too much too quickly in a desperate, failing struggle for money.
A thorough, well-researched and well balanced piece of work from a latter day journalist with a similar gift for friendship and connection.
September 25, 2013
I have tried to finish this book, I really have. However, it seems I don't like Leigh Hunt much! It was the writing itself that I couldn't deal with, it was the subject himself!
I have discovered a fondness for his poetry though. Oh well, something positive came out of this reading experience!
I have discovered a fondness for his poetry though. Oh well, something positive came out of this reading experience!
December 28, 2008
Intriguing book and poet.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews