This is a Life of Johnson for readers who are famililiar with Boswell. Hibbert's version of the Life is written with graceful familiarity and affection. He begins with a disclaimer. There are no revelations here, no hitherto undiscovered manuscripts from family vaults or secondhand dealer's dusty shelves. Hibbert has drawn on the existing published sources to present an intimate and affectionate account of this brilliant, tortured man. It is a complete life, from childhood to his painful death. Hibbert writes with engaging clarity and grace. There are, for me, two crucial tests for a biography of Johnson: how well does the biographer negotiate the shoals of portraying Johnson's wife Elizabeth - 'Tetty' - and his last, embittered b ( )