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Life at Grasmere
he beautiful and peaceful heart of the Lake District, Grasmere was an inspiration to both Dorothy and William Wordsworth. Hills, lakes and orchards, letter writing, walks and welcome visitors (including fellow poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge) provoked in Dorothy's journal great, lyrical prose, which in turn influenced her brother's unsurpassed poetry. The two - journal entries and poems - are here set side by side, a glorious celebration of life and nature around Dove Cottage, over the first year they called it home.
- GenresClassics
94 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 1, 2009
53 people want to read
About the author
Dorothy Wordsworth
96 books36 followersDorothy Mae Ann Wordsworth was an English poet and diarist. She was the sister of the Romantic poet William Wordsworth, and the two were close for all of their lives. Dorothy Wordsworth did not set out to be an author, and her writings comprise a series of letters, diary entries, and short stories.
She also edited much of William’s work. She was one of two people he attributed to the development of his intellect. Without her he would never have achieved such poetic heights.
She also edited much of William’s work. She was one of two people he attributed to the development of his intellect. Without her he would never have achieved such poetic heights.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 3, 2019
I picked this up two years ago at a bookshop in Grasmere on holiday with my partner. I was only faintly aware of the Wordsworth connection at the time (and we did not visit Dove Cottage) and was especially ignorant of Dorothy Wordsworth. (Now I see her journal is something of a classic text which perhaps I might read in full).
This was soothing bedtime reading. The book is very short - less than a hundred pages - and includes portions of Dorothy's journal kept at Grasmere. Entries are interspersed by her brother's poems, prompted either because she is copying them down in her day, or because of their connection to place/events: for example, the elegy for his brother John, included after Dorothy relates what would be their last ever meeting. Reading through the journal entries felt akin to listening to Ambient music - hypnotic repetitions that gradually accumulate though never acquire form. It was rather like dipping into the 'atmosphere' of another person's mind, growing gently accustomed to their perceptions and daily rhythms. The journal is very quotidian and unselfconscious, given over to description of routine such as planting flowers and vegetables, daily readings, visiting friends, taking walks, chance encounters, etc. It is also clear that she shares her brother's famous appreciation for nature. The descriptions she gives of the shifting seasons is very beautiful and carefully observed, and one hears its echoes in William's poetry.
The poems are all wonderful. I was familiar with some of them but appreciated the grounding they receive here. Perhaps superficially of me, I find it easier to take in poetry in isolation. There is something a bit impersonal about my book of Wordsworth's poetry, and about reading 10 - 15 poems at random without any sense of guidance.
This was soothing bedtime reading. The book is very short - less than a hundred pages - and includes portions of Dorothy's journal kept at Grasmere. Entries are interspersed by her brother's poems, prompted either because she is copying them down in her day, or because of their connection to place/events: for example, the elegy for his brother John, included after Dorothy relates what would be their last ever meeting. Reading through the journal entries felt akin to listening to Ambient music - hypnotic repetitions that gradually accumulate though never acquire form. It was rather like dipping into the 'atmosphere' of another person's mind, growing gently accustomed to their perceptions and daily rhythms. The journal is very quotidian and unselfconscious, given over to description of routine such as planting flowers and vegetables, daily readings, visiting friends, taking walks, chance encounters, etc. It is also clear that she shares her brother's famous appreciation for nature. The descriptions she gives of the shifting seasons is very beautiful and carefully observed, and one hears its echoes in William's poetry.
The poems are all wonderful. I was familiar with some of them but appreciated the grounding they receive here. Perhaps superficially of me, I find it easier to take in poetry in isolation. There is something a bit impersonal about my book of Wordsworth's poetry, and about reading 10 - 15 poems at random without any sense of guidance.
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July 1, 2016It is a nice idea to have part of Dorothy's journal and some of William's work that she refers to side by side but I think you'd be better reading a more complete edition with notes and then sourcing William's poetry separately. I do love William's poem in memory of their brother John. I'd not read that one before and of course Dorothy's journals give an incredible insight into life in a different time.
February 27, 2022
Some lovely descriptions of the scenery and it is good to see Wordsworth's poetry in the domestic context but there isn't much about the emotional life of the writers. There is a lot of walking, tea drinking, rain and headaches!
March 22, 2014
Mi aspettavo un po' di più dalla sorella di Wordsworth, tanto più che ospitava Coleridge ogni 3X2 ;)
Elenco un po' noioso di giornate passate in un cottage nella meravigiosa brughiera inglese all'inizio del 1800, con qualche poesia di Wordsworth qua e là, che però non basta a farne un'opera degna di nota.
Elenco un po' noioso di giornate passate in un cottage nella meravigiosa brughiera inglese all'inizio del 1800, con qualche poesia di Wordsworth qua e là, che però non basta a farne un'opera degna di nota.
December 15, 2013
I was surprized to like this book. It is the diary of Dorothy Wordswoth, William Wordsworth's sister. While I thought it would only be about her, she actually give a peak of William W.'s life. She also talks about his poems and other famous poet Coleridge.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews