The Letters of Rudyard Kipling 1872-89 Author:Rudyard Kipling, Thomas Pinney The first volume of Kipling's letters traces his transition from schoolboy thrust early into adulthood, to journalist in Punjab, and on to his triumphant return to England. From a short thank-you letter from the young Kipling to his Aunt Louisa Baldwin in 1872 to an anecdotal letter to Rider Haggard in 1889 relating an early version of the c... more »urse of the mummy, the letters track Kipling's growth and development, his trials and successes in the newspaper industry in India, his first creative forays, and his warm relationship with his family and fiancée. Kipling's early disinterest in ideas about the empire during his India years--a point of view that would change drastically in the future--is reflected in these letters as he echoes the received notions of those around him and amusingly satirizes the scandals and ineptitudes of the ruling class.« less