Everbest ever

Spanning two decades, from 1968 to 1989, these letters, written as jeux d'esprit and presented in the same spirit, touch upon Gertrude Stein and Marcel Duchamp; music criticism; travel, food, and wine; Thomson's life, compositions, and writings; the local musical scene; and plans (sometimes fulfilled, sometimes not) for concerts and recordings. The letters record Thomson's correspondence with composer and writer Charles Shere, soprano Margery Tede, and two of his San Francisco friends, Victor Rowley and Stanley Yarnell. Editorial annotations place the letters in context.