Book excerpt: This is the fourth of the eight volumes of a widely acclaimed edition comprising all the surviving letters of Joseph Conrad. It covers the period during which he wrote Under Western Eyes, and the mental and physical breakdown that followed the novel's completion. The tale of these years emerges vividly from the correspondence. Of special interest are frank critiques of John Galsworthy's work, an indignant falling out with Ford Madox Ford, revealing accounts of his writing in progress, and reactions to the tumultuous politics of the day.