The English author Thomas Hardy proclaimed that America had two great attractions: the skyscraper, and the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay. In these diaries the great American poet illuminates not only her literary genius, but her life as a devoted daughter, sister, wife, and public heroine; and finally as a solitary, tragic figure.

This is the first publication of the diaries she kept from adolescence until middle age, between 1907 and 1949, focused on her most productive years. Who was the girl who wrote “Renascence”, that marvel of early twentieth-century poetry?

What trauma or spiritual journey inspired the poem? And after such celebrity why did she vanish into near seclusion after 1940? These questions hover over the life and work, and trouble biographers and readers alike. Intimate, eloquent, these confessions and keen observations provide the key to understanding Millay's journey from small-town obscurity to world fame, and the tragedy of her demise.

英国作家托马斯·哈代（Thomas Hardy）宣称，美国有两个巨大的吸引力：摩天大楼和埃德娜·圣文森特·米莱（Edna St. Vincent Millay）的诗歌。在这些日记中，这位伟大的美国诗人不仅照亮了她的文学天才，而且照亮了她作为忠实的女儿、姐妹、妻子和公共英雄的生活；最后照亮了她作为一个孤独的悲剧性人物的生活。

本书首次出版她从青春期到中年的日记，时间为1907年至1949年，集中在她富有成就的几年。写下20世纪初诗歌“新生”这一奇迹的女孩是谁？是什么创伤或精神旅程激发了这首诗？在如此出名的情况下，她为什么在1940年之后几乎隐姓埋名？这些问题盘旋在她的生活和作品中，也困扰着传记作者和读者。这些真实详尽的记录、敏锐的观察，将让读者更加了解米莱从小镇的默默无闻到世界闻名的过程，以及她的死亡悲剧。