A History of Having a Great Many Times Not Continued to Be Friends: Mabel Dodge and Gertrude Stein, 1911-1934

Mabel Dodge first met Gertrude Stein in Paris in 1911 and quickly became an avid promoter of her new style of writing. A charged and intense friendship developed between them. In 1912, Stein wrote "Portrait of Mabel Dodge at the Villa Curonia," and in 1913, at the time of the Armory Show, Dodge wrote an article that introduced Gertrude Stein to America. The dialogue between these two early and influential supporters of modernism communicates vibrantly about new trends in the arts and about personalities of the period.
Presented here is the complete correspondence between Dodge and Stein: 105 letters from Dodge to Stein and 30 from Stein to Dodge. With her connective narrative, Patricia Everett re-creates the rise and fall of a remarkable association between two of the century's extraordinary literary figures, their emotional and practical dependence on each other, and the unique ambiance in each of their salons.

Mabel Dodge met Gertrude Stein and read her The Making of Americans in 1911. Intrigued with the contemporary thought offered in the book, Dodge spent decades exploring and following intellectual movements and their creators while developing an intimate relationship with Stein through correspondence. Patricia Everett tracks the journey through this fascinating collection of letters that are tied together with a compelling narrative. The story visits John Reed, Thornton Wilder, D. H. Lawrence and others while examining the curious relationship of the principals.