I would never set myself up as a Beethoven expert, but he is one of the
long lasting musical loves of my life.  The fellow is insidious, he gets
inside my psyche.  In the process of organizing my bookshelves, I found
that I have 70-some books on LvB.

I'm currently reading the kind of book I abhor (in principle), a 3-volume
novelized biography by John Suchet.  It's in paperback, and much worth
reading.  The author gets inside Beethoven and I see more clearly from his
eyes what it was like to be Beethoven.

The most remarkable thing to me is that he knew exactly what his value to
music was, and in a strange way, knew how he would be viewed by history.

He is one of those historical personages who is a living person to me.  I
feel that I know him.  Amazing.

Bill S