I felt like a voyeur, but I thoroughly enjoyed these old penpal letters from a 21 and 22 year old Morrissey to a guy named Robert Mackie.
Some of it is funny, some of it is a bit embarrassing, but I wouldn't hold someone's letter-writing from their youth against them anyway. I know that there are some embarrassing letters from me out there somewhere.
Two of my favorite lines:
"It was a terrible blow to hear that you actually worked. I didn't think anyone did so anymore. It's so old-fashioned to work. I'd much rather lounge about the house all day looking fascinating. I'd rather look fascinating than have a permanent income. Am I insane?"
Also:
"I'm sure there are worse groups than Duran Duran, but I'll be damned if I can think of any. The Polecats have just been on duh box destroying John, I'm Only Miming now if they REALLY had any imagination they'd shoot themselves."
This amuses me because Morrissey ended up working with Boz Boorer of the Polecats in 1991, and they've been together ever since. His songwriting relationship with Boorer has lasted nearly three times as long as The Smiths were even in existence.