the experience of reading in Britain, from 1450 to 1945...

Reading Experience Database UK Historical image of readers
 

 
 
 

Record Number: 33052


Reading Experience:

Evidence:

'I am a week late in thanking you for your parcel and letter � and specially for the book of sonnets which has been constantly either in my pocket or hand. It is just the kind of thing one wants�that can be opened and closed again for five or ten minutes that may come to hand. It contains many fine ones which I had not met before: and altogether its possession is a great boon.�

Century:

1900-1945

Date:

Between 2 Aug 1915 and 9 Aug 1915

Country:

Belgium

Time

n/a

Place:

city: Ploegsteert
county: Hainault
other location: trenches

Type of Experience
(Reader):
 

silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

Type of Experience
(Listener):
 

solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown


Reader / Listener / Reading Group:

Reader:

Charles Hamilton Sorley

Age:

Adult (18-100+)

Gender:

Male

Date of Birth:

19 May 1895

Socio-Economic Group:

Professional / academic / merchant / farmer

Occupation:

First Lieutenant, 7th Suffolk Regiment

Religion:

Agnostic

Country of Origin:

Scotland

Country of Experience:

Belgium

Listeners present if any:
e.g family, servants, friends

n/a


Additional Comments:

n/a



Text Being Read:

Author:

Anon Anon

Title:

[sonnets]

Genre:

Poetry

Form of Text:

Print: Book

Publication Details

n/a

Provenance

owned


Source Information:

Record ID:

33052

Source:

Print

Author:

Charles Hamilton Sorley

Editor:

Jean Moorcroft Wilson

Title:

The Collected Letters of Charles Hamilton Sorley

Place of Publication:

London

Date of Publication:

1990

Vol:

n/a

Page:

247

Additional Comments:

To Miss Mary Smith, 9 August 1915 [Belgium, near Ypres]. Sorley was probably by this time at Ploegsteert, near Ypres

Citation:

Charles Hamilton Sorley, Jean Moorcroft Wilson (ed.), The Collected Letters of Charles Hamilton Sorley, (London, 1990), p. 247, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=33052, accessed: 07 February 2026


Additional Comments:

None