NANCY MITFORD died in 1973 before she could write an autobiography. But she was one of the great letter-writers of this century, and her sparkling correspondence to her famous family and to a wide circle of brilliant friends sheds an extraordinary light on their lives and the times in which they lived. *'This enormous, rich selection of Nancy Mitford's letters shows that the vitality and peculiarity of this comic genius bubbled up in all her relationships . . . the letters are a trove of perfect one-liners, of fantastical stories confected to entertain the recipient (and the writer), of wincingly accurate assessments . . . She knew that her letters were probably her best work, and this book makes us think she was right.'Independent on Sunday'These letters, vivid, spontaneous and sparkling with gossip, observation and comment, pulse with the authentic flavour of Mitfordspeak . . . Charlotte Mosley's editing of this enthralling correspondence is flawless'Daily Mail'A marvellous book'The Times