You alone are real to me

Never before available in English, You Alone Are Real to Me documents the relationship between Andreas-Salomé and Rainer Maria Rilke that spanned almost 30 years. Andreas-Salomé gives an intimate account of Rilke’s poetic development from the early romantic poems to the sculpted new poems and the final breakthrough of the Elegies. From their romantic beginnings to the later twists and turns of their separate lives, Rilke appealed to Andreas-Salomé during times of crisis in his writing as well as in the intimate matters of his life. Andreas-Salomé captures both the summit and the abyss of Rilke’s creative struggle. The memoir offers a stunning portrait of Rilke, as we in the English-speaking world have never really seen him. Richly illustrated with photos, this book is an indispensable work on the author of The Duino Elegies, as well as a rich resource for the growing interest in Andreas-Salomé. Angela von der Lippe is a senior editor at W.W. Norton and holds a doctorate in German Literature and Language from Brown University.