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Letters of Vincent Van Gogh (Revised)
Letters of Vincent Van Gogh (Revised) | Vincent Van Gogh
Most unusually among major painters, Vincent van Gogh (1853-90) was also an accomplished writer. His letters provide both a unique self-portrait and a vivid picture of the contemporary cultural scene. Van Gogh emerges as a complex but captivating personality, struggling with utter integrity to fulfil his artistic destiny. This major new edition, which is based on an entirely new translation, reinstating a large number of passages omitted from earlier editions, is expressly designed to reveal his inner journey as much as the outward facts of his life. It includes complete letters wherever possible, linked with brief passages of connecting narrative and showing all the pen-and-ink sketches that originally went with them. Despite the familiar image of Van Gogh as an antisocial madman who died a martyr to his art, his troubled life was rich in friendships and generous passions. In his letters we discover the humanitarian and religious causes he embraced, his fascination with the French Revolution, his striving for God and for ethical ideals, his desperate courtship of his cousin, Kee Vos, and his largely unsuccessful search for love. All of this, suggests De Leeuw, demolishes some of the myths surrounding Van Gogh and his career but brings hint before us as a flesh-and-blood human being, an individual of immense pathos and spiritual depth. Perhaps even more moving, these letters illuminate his constant conflicts as a painter, torn between realism, symbolism and abstraction; between landscape and portraiture; between his desire to depict peasant life and the exciting diversions of the city; between his uncanny versatility as a sketcher and his ideal of the full-scale finished tableau. SinceVan Gogh received little feedback from the public, he wrote at length to friends, fellow artists and his family, above all to his brother Theo, the Parisian art dealer, who was his confidant and mainstay. Along with his intense powers of visual imagination, Vincent brought to the
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IndoorDame
Letters of Vincent Van Gogh | Vincent Van Gogh
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dabbe 💜🩶💜 2mo
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Yes 🩶🩶 2mo
Gissy ❤️🙌 2mo
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ChelseaM6010
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#MayMontage
Day 19. Letters
#Letters
On my tbr!

Eggs Excellent 👌🏼 10mo
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KristiAhlers
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Pickpick

This was to my mind very fascinating. Whilst it is a slow go at times, it picks up midway through the book once he starts painting and for me having insight into how he interacted with his family was interesting. #bookspin #readnonfiction @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 10mo
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AllDebooks
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Anyone else a fan? This short reel of Vincent Van Gogh's sketches is just what I needed today.

Image - The rock of Montmajour with pine trees, Van Gogh, Arles, 1888.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CnCE89SqEN7/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=

IndoorDame ❤️❤️❤️ 1y
batsy So lovely 💕 1y
JamieArc I‘ll be visiting the Van Gogh exhibit in Detroit for my birthday Saturday. Thanks for sharing ❤️ 1y
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AllDebooks @JamieArc oh wow, enjoy x 1y
AnneCecilie I read a collection of his letters a few years back and loved them. 1y
AllDebooks @AnneCecilie I have them too. 1y
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janeycanuck
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Pickpick

Very interesting but also hard to get through until the second half when van Gogh started painting.

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janeycanuck
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#MarchTBR! Two full months into the year and I seem to be falling into a good rhythm of how many books I can reasonably read from the shelves while library holds float in and take priority.

This month, I‘ve still got a few in progress from last month, my February #SweetReads, and four more from the stacks in my quest to #readmyowndamnbooks (which include 2 for my StoryGraph #readingrandomizer challenge)

mcctrish I love that hashtag #readmyowndamnbooks my TBR has a life of its own after the pandemic 2y
merelybookish Some good books. I loved Matrix! 2y
janeycanuck @mcctrish Yeah, mine is out of control. I‘m trying to read four off the shelf each month and really, really trying to stick to a two-out-one-in rule. 2y
janeycanuck @merelybookish I think it‘s what I‘ll pick up after my library book. I loved Fates and Furies (though I know they are nothing alike) 2y
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DebinHawaii
Letters of Vincent Van Gogh | Vincent Van Gogh
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#QuotsyJul21 #painting

“I dream my painting and I paint my dream.” Vincent Van Gogh

I took the picture used as my quote background at the Beyond Van Gogh Experience.

TK-421 ❤️💙❤️ 3y
TK-421 How was it? 3y
DebinHawaii @TK-421 I really enjoyed it. They did a nice job with creating the experiences & bringing the paintings to life! 💙 3y
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jayasurya
Pickpick

Love /passion and loneliness of Artist

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DebinHawaii
Letters of Vincent Van Gogh | Vincent Van Gogh
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#QuotsyJul21 #great

As a nod to the Beyond Van Gogh immersive art experience I am going to with my friend tomorrow (my first big indoor public event since COVID 😱), I thought I would choose this quote for today‘s “great” prompt.

JamieArc Please update with your experience! I‘ve heard mixed reviews and am debating whether to go to our local one. 3y
DebinHawaii @JamieArc Will do. I was debating too but my friend talked me into it as she really wanted to go. I am more excited about having brunch before we go! 😉🤣 3y
LazyOwl I wanted to go to this as well, but sadly tickets are a bit too price for us at the moment. I hope you enoy 3y
TK-421 Beautiful quote! ❤️💔 A Van Gogh immersive art experience sounds wonderful-so jealous! Hope you have an awesome time 😊 3y
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anushareflects
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Perfect Sundays are spent with the artists we love. Soaking in some Vincent.

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OriginalCyn620
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Emilymdxn
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Pickpick

I enjoyed reading this a lot! Van Gogh is an artist with so many myths about him so it was really valuable to see him as a human being in his own words. He occasionally annoyed me but it was it was still cool to see him as a vivid enough person that I could find him annoying. Most of his letters were just asking his brother for money but there was some wonderful material in between!

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Sunraven
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My first #24in48 was fun, if somewhat underwhelming timewise. I also had a nearly inevitable Timer Mishap (an accidental reset), but luckily I was taking notes on my progress as I went along, so I just had to do some math to get my total time: 7:47. 😉

Books finished: 4
Books started: 6
WIPs that saw progress: 1

Megabooks 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 5y
Sunraven @Megabooks: Thank you! ☺️ Although I didn‘t get anywhere near 24 hours, at least I got to revisit some old favorites and explore some new and interesting books, and that seems like a win to me. 😁 5y
Megabooks @Sunraven Definitely!! 👍🏻👍🏻📚 5y
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Sunraven

Well, the guy who wrote the introduction to the edition of this book that I‘m reading is — to use a word I‘ve never used before and which I‘ve acquired 100 percent due to Littens — bananapants. Of course, the fact that his “introductory essay” takes up literally a quarter of the book is probably a warning. 😆

Someday I‘ll make it to the bit with actual letters that were actually written by Van Gogh...

megnews I skipped the intro and commentary. I just wanted to read his letters. Working my way through. 5y
Sunraven @megnews: I thought about it, but I‘m a wee bit obsessive, and since I‘m tracking the specific edition on Goodreads, I‘d feel dishonest if I skipped 25% of it but marked it read. 😅 Ideally I would have just switched to a different edition, but this is what I have, so I slog onward... 5y
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quietlycuriouskate
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(There are spoken quotes from his letters so I'm counting this as book-related.)
Oof! 😩 Even though the more dramatic incidents (you know what I'm talking about!) mostly happen off-screen, this is a film where I wanted to sit quietly in the dark afterwards until the credits had finished rolling. Willem Dafoe is brilliant as Vincent.
(I want to make him a big bowl of my special turmeric chai porridge: it's so freakin' YELLOW!) 🌻

readordierachel LOVED this movie 5y
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megnews
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I understand these letters get pretty depressing later in his life.
But so far I‘m loving Van Gogh‘s attitude toward bread and reading!

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Landslide
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TK-421 ❤️ 5y
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quietlycuriouskate
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My October reading wrap-up. Saints preserve us, I stuck to my book-buying ban!
I've picked the tagged book as being the one that I think will stay with me the longest, though Burial Rites is a close second. Apparently, I saved the best books for the end of the month.

Cathythoughts Well done ! ... I havnt read tagged book , but I though Burial Rites was very good too 5y
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quietlycuriouskate
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Pickpick

"To succeed, to enjoy lasting good fortune, one must have a different temperament from mine. I shall never do what I could have done and ought to have wanted and pursued." ?
Vincent, friend, you did all right! I admire him all the more for reading these letters. He comes across as a difficult individual, yes, but also a deeply thoughtful and vitally involved one. I found the cumulative effect to be simultaneously heartbreaking and affirming.

BarbaraBB Well said 💕 5y
Cathythoughts Beautiful 5y
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abookishbutterfly
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Some of my favorite secondhand finds!

Laura317 These look great! Especially the Letters of Van Gogh. 5y
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quietlycuriouskate
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I like Vincent's definition of an artist very much. I think it has humility without false modesty. The vitality of it appeals, too.

Cathythoughts I love this definition... a beautiful answer 5y
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quietlycuriouskate
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I like this. Van Gogh is usually seen as someone in thrall to the dance of creation/destruction, with the metaphorical red shoes on. But here he is in boot-polishing maintenance mode. I find his concern for his brother's diet quite touching.

What's all this about disposing of books, though?! ? Over the page he does go on to say that well-written books are "a source of comfort in life" but even so!

Cathythoughts This is very touching 💔 6y
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SkeletonKey
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Eeeeeey, look what I scored. Vincent Van Gogh‘s letters made into footwear by Vans, lol.

I kind of have a uniform when it comes to everyday clothing and when my black shoes wear out I immediately go and buy the same black shoes and so on and so on. It‘s just less to think about that way.

But I made an exception for these because it‘s VINCENT‘S LETTERS! Time for a reread maybe.

#vanity #shoes #vans #vincentsletters

Tanisha_A 😍 6y
DivineDiana Love these!!! 6y
Lindy 😍May your new shoes fill you with delight every time you wear them. (Maybe exceptions will creep into the rest of your wardrobe.) 6y
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SkeletonKey @Lindy - I am definitely happier to experiment these days after top surgery 😆 6y
Richryan52 Love it! 6y
Lindy @SkeletonKey Good for you. Be well. 🌻 6y
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DebinHawaii
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#QuotsyJuly18 #strength

Not sure if this strength quote appears in the letters contained in this book or not, but it seemed a good one to tag. 💜

TK-421 ❤️ 6y
obviateit Beautiful! 6y
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Susanita
Letters of Vincent Van Gogh | Vincent Van Gogh
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Not really book related, but I watched this movie last night. It‘s beautiful and poignant. See it if you can! #starrystarrynight

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CharissaWeaksAuthor
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jpmcwisemorgan Yup, I‘m gonna need this too. 6y
VelvetSpade 😍😍😍 6y
thegirlwiththelibrarybag Well, 😍 yes 6y
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teebe
Letters of Vincent Van Gogh | Vincent Van Gogh
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Having my 2nd coffee of the day and reading my 2nd book of the day while waiting for my 2nd flight of the day✈️ Can‘t wait to get home, see Gambit, and open my #funkopopswap box. Why does it seem like I always have a business trip on swap days?

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Tjackson
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No time to read last night because I went to see “Loving Vincent”. It was beautiful. It was a great tribute to a great artist and it took many contemporary artists hours and hours of work to produce. Please take the time to check it out.

AnneCecilie Where can I see it? 6y
Tjackson I saw it at an independent theatre. It is not on Amazon Prime or Netflix, yet. 6y
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erzascarletbookgasm
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Cathythoughts Love this ❤️❤️❤️ 6y
TK-421 ❤️ 6y
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AshleyHoss820
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#Sniffles I know this isn‘t from a book, but I don‘t care! Fight me! I don‘t cry very often, but this episode of Doctor Who makes me cry EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. I know because I‘ve seen me do it. 😭😭😭 It‘s stunning, beautiful, and gut-wrenching.
#150PnPCoverParty

sprainedbrain Omg me too! 😭😭😭 6y
GrilledCheeseSamurai It's a great episode! 👌 6y
LeahBergen 👏🏻👏🏻 6y
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SpeculativeFemale 100% agree 6y
AshleyHoss820 @sprainedbrain Right!? In the feels, every time!! 6y
sprainedbrain @AshleyHoss820 it‘s so bad I cry when I hear that Athlete song start playing. I‘m tearing up a little right now. 😂 6y
AshleyHoss820 @sprainedbrain No joke!! I was just *telling* someone about this episode and I choked up...🙄🙄🙄😂😂😂 6y
KVanRead IT IS!!! 6y
AshleyHoss820 @KVanRead Right!? 😊😊😊 6y
CrowCAH No worries; I cry at the same thing too, even when I know what‘s going to happen! 6y
AshleyHoss820 @CrowCAH I know!! Each time I watch this episode, I think I‘ll be okay, but noooo! 😄 6y
BookBabe Is there a Van Gogh connection? I‘ve never seen the show. 6y
AshleyHoss820 @BookBabe Yes! The Doctor is a time traveler. He and his companion, Amy, go back in time and meet Van Gogh. The Doctor brings Van Gogh to the future to see an exhibit of his and to show him that he truly is important, that he is valued. Tony Curran portrays Van Gogh and he is PHENOMENAL! If you don‘t watch any Doctor Who, I would suggest that episode (S5:E10) and Blink (S3:E10) Keep in mind, the Doctor can regenerate & his face (actor) changes. 😊 6y
BookBabe Wow! I‘m going to have to watch those episodes! 😃👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 6y
AshleyHoss820 @BookBabe Yes, do! Especially Vincent and the Doctor...if having your heart ripped out and handed to you is your sort of thing...😂😂😂 6y
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AnneCecilie
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This is the longest book I read this year - a collection of van Gogh's letters. 1020 pages.
#LongestBookYouRead #AllTheBooksOf2017

bookloo 😍😍 Want! 6y
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BarbaraBB
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“It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is well done.”

One of many quotes of Vincent van Gogh to his brother Theo. This ultimate collection of his letters in six books is of the highlights on my shelves.

#QuotsyDec17 #Letters

MinDea Wow! Beautiful! 6y
TheBookStacker Vincent Van Gogh was my first artistic love in fifth grade and it has persisted ever since, I still find he is my favorite artist of all time. I guess my art teachers influence really had an imprint on me! 6y
Cinfhen Gorgeous 🙌🏻💕 6y
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Cathythoughts ❤️❤️❤️ 6y
LeahBergen What a beautiful set of books 😍 6y
Bambolina_81 💞💕💞 6y
BarbaraBB @LeahBergen I had to think of you actually. You‘ve got so many great editions/collection. This is my only one 😀! 6y
Kalalalatja Beautiful! 6y
LeahBergen Aww, thank you! 😘😘 (but I have seen MANY lovely books that you‘ve posted, too 😄). 6y
quietlycuriouskate What a marvellous collection! 😍 6y
batsy Wow, what an enviable collection 😍 6y
CoffeeCatsBooks Oh, I wanted that set. I ended up with the 3 volume Bulfinch one which is very pretty but no illustrations. Only read one volume so far because it was very upsetting. 6y
BarbaraBB @TheBookStacker Must have been good teachers to have such an impact! 6y
BarbaraBB @CoffeeCatsBooks I have worked for the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam so I could buy them very cheap! 6y
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Gina
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💟💖💕💗💝

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heatherkaz
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#AshesToAshes #SeptemBowie
"I'm happy, hope you're happy too
I've loved all I've needed, love
Sordid details following"

#VanGogh had many personal demons and (by some standards) substance abuse issues to deal with, especially in his final years. I'm completely and utterly fascinated by his life; his letters to his brother, Theo, are on my TBR.
@Marchpane @Cinfhen

Cinfhen Sounds like a tortured soul 😦 7y
heatherkaz Yes, very much so, @Cinfhen . Quite an interesting life 7y
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Jas16
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#bookandfruit #splashintosummerreads

And they color coordinate!

BibliophileMomma 🙌🏼🙌🏼 7y
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IamIamIam
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I bought this again after talking about Van Gogh's visible slide into mental illness earlier tonight. I read this in my first semester of college for my honors English class which focused on landscape as a character in literature. I'm really excited to wade through this again with an adult perspective!

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Simona
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My first association is V. Van Gogh and his vibrant works.

#maybookflowers #sunshine

LeahBergen Yes! 7y
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Sapphire
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Spent the day in Amsterdam. Visited the Rijks and Van Gogh museums. Had to stop at the American book center to pick up a copy of his letters. Amazing descriptions of why he chose certain subjects and colors. I have my tram and bus reading for the week now.

maximoffs He is my favourite painter! 7y
Sapphire There was an entire exhibit just of his self portraits in one gallery. You could really see how his technique developed and how and when he played and experimented with different facets. 7y
KimSG I know it's not book related but the Van Gogh episode of Doctor Who is one of my favorites. 7y
Sapphire Me too! 7y
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AnneCecilie
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Update: 257 pages in, only 764 to go 😄

With the #24in48 coming up this weekend and the #HPchapteraday starting on book 2 this weekend as well, it was time to put this on hold. I don't think I will manage to finish the next section until readathon starts, and this is definitely not a readathon book. So far it's interesting to read about the artists and authors that he like.

Will pick this up again soon.

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thebookmagpie
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New Kindle cover ☺️

Desha Ooooh! Pretty! ❤️❤️❤️ 7y
stargazerblue49 😻😻😻 7y
readingonarainyday Gorgeous! 7y
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UwannaPublishme Beautiful! 😍 7y
SharonGoforth Oooooh!!! 7y
Bookzombie Love! 7y
Sarah83 lovely 😍 7y
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TomAllman
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Amazeballs