About the book: 1965 / "Letters from my Mill", inspired by Provence, is one of the most original and famous works of Alphonse Daudet. Staying on doctors' orders for several months year in the south, Daudet closely observed the life and customs of Provence. The range of themes and favorite characters of Daudet are the inhabitants of Provence: peasants, artisans, shepherds, lighthouse keepers. The author’s attitude towards them is sympathetic and ironic, in the traditions of folklore, fabliau. The collection also includes the theme of social inequality. The author spoke with bitterness about the onset of market relations in the patriarchal village. But these themes sound muted, not reaching real intensity. The naturalism of the descriptions is tempered by a romantic attitude towards reality. Dode’s sketches of nature were especially good in the collection, in which he proved himself to be a master of soft poetic landscape.