The Works of William Cowper

On New Year's Day, an unexpected bird song prompts William Cowper to consider the possibility of happier days. This volume places such verse beside his letters and an account of his life. Its editor, T. S. Grimshawe, explains his decision to combine private correspondence with earlier biographical material and arrange the letters chronologically. Christian belief is a particular concern of the editorial account, which argues for its importance in understanding the poet.

The letters from Weston bring literary work into the same frame as friendship and daily discomfort. Cowper discusses a new edition of Homer, responds to a friend's play, and describes the consolation he finds in Mrs. Unwin's company. These exchanges offer readers interested in eighteenth-century English writing a close view of a poet's judgments and personal concerns. Moving between biography, correspondence and poems, the collection connects his public writing with the relationships and reflections preserved in his prose.