Beloved Boy: Letters to Hendrik C. Andersen, 1899-1915 Review

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(More customer reviews)Amazon.com wisely recommends HENRY JAMES: BELOVED BOY Letters to Hendrick C. Andersen, 1899 - 1915 as a suggested companion book to Colm Toibin's THE MASTER. Fine work on their part! This rather slim volume is a delight to read. The Introduction by both Millicent Bell and especially by Rosella Mamoli Zorzi (who had introduced the initial printing of these letters in Italian in 2000) set an interesting backdrop for the window into Henry James life and love, though both are a bit too cautious in reassuring the reader that just because the letters from the 56+ year old Henry James and the 27-year-old Norwegian American sculptor Hendrick Andersen 'sound' passionate, that they really don't indicate a sexual history between the two! That fact, to this reader, is inconsequential. Few who linger through the elegant and at time effusive prose written by the Master author to a fledgling sculptor cannot dismiss that there was a commitment of passion there: whether or not that passion was physically consummated is entirely secondary and certainly may remain in the realm of privacy. Henry James writes of his obvious attraction to the handsome, muscular sculptor who had rather grandiose dreams of creating monumental nudes for a utopian World City. James' letters prove him to be a rather astute art critic and mentor as well as a December/May epistolary (at least) lover. He encourages Andersen's talent over the 15 years of letter exchange, looks out for the career turns of attempting to market massive sculptures instead of the ready market for smaller works such as busts, and in general gives moral support to a young artists struggling with seeking success. We unfortunately do not have Andersen's responses here: the recipient of the letters' response is evident only in the subsequent letter critique from James. These letters should be read for the elegant prose of Henry James and for a closer insight into his ambivalent sexuality that informs many of his novels. Read this side by side with Toibin's wondrous novel, as a footnote to The Master.

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Already the subject of articles in theInternational Herald Tribune and theLondon Times, Beloved Boy is a remarkablecollection of letters tracing Henry James's fascination with and enduring devotionto a young Norwegian-American artist. James was already fifty-six when, visitingRome in 1899, he was introduced to the twenty-seven--year-old Hendrik Andersen. Inan uncanny instance of life imitating art, Andersen bore an unmistakable resemblanceto the title character of James's 1875 novel RoderickHudson -- a figure who, like Andersen, was a young sculptorventuring into life as an expatriate in Italy. Although his initial meeting withAndersen was brief, James was deeply moved by the young man. He wrote to Andersenalmost immediately after his return to his Sussex home, and remained a faithfulcorrespondent until his own death in 1915.The twomen met on only seven occasions, and never for more than a few days, so theirfriendship was almost entirely epistolary. The letters assembled here, nearly halfof which are previously unpublished, exhibit a voice decidedly more vulnerable thanthat which we usually associate with James. They also shed new light on the writer'shomoerotic leanings, as he approaches Andersen with a passion, as well as atenderness, typically reserved for a lover.Evengreater than his feelings for Andersen, however, was James's devotion to art.Despite an initially positive opinion, James was forced to reassess Andersen's work,which became increasingly grandiose-- exhibiting "megalomania," asJames bluntly diagnosed it. The sculptor's tendency toward monumentality, includingplans for a utopian "World City," were at odds with James'scommitment to observing reality in all its complexity and imperfection. Despitethis, James's affection for his friend never wavered; his letters remained occasionsto celebrate the youth and beauty personified for him by Andersen.

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