Novelist's letters to mistress published online

Letters written by American novelist Sinclair Lewis to his mistress have been published online for the first time.

Available through the Minnesota Digital Library project Minnesota Reflections, the documents shed light on the writer's relationship with actress Marcella Powers.

According to the St Cloud Times, a total of 262 letters and one poem, which are owned by St Cloud State University, have been digitised.

Lewis met Powers in 1939 at the age of 54 and began an extra-marital relationship. He was married to his second wife Dorothy Thompson at the time.

His writings contain references to his affection for his mistress, and give insight into his creative thinking as an author and playwright.

St Cloud State's archivist Tom Steman said: "University records aren't that sexy, but this is certainly, in my opinion, the most prominent collection we have."

Lewis wrote numerous novels during his career, including Babbitt, which was published in 1922, and Elmer Gantry, which was written in 1926 and published a year later.


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