George Robert Gissing was an English novelist who published twenty-three novels between 1880 and 1903. From his early naturalistic works, he developed into one of the most accomplished realists of the late-Victorian era. In 1903 Gissing published The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft, which brought him much acclaim. This is his most autobiographical work. It is the memoir of the last happy years of a writer who had struggled much like Gissing, but thanks to a late legacy, he had been able to give up writing to retire to the countryside. After a brief flirtation with socialism in his youth, Gissing quickly lost faith in the labour movements and scorned the popular enthusiasms of his day. In 1892, he wrote to his sister Ellen, "I fear we shall live through great troubles yet...We cannot resist it, but I throw what weight I may have on the side of those who believe in an aristocracy of brains, as against the brute domination of the quarter-educated mob."
《四季随笔》（原名《亨利·赖克罗夫特杂记》），是吉辛的散文代表作。其中叙述的隐士赖克罗夫特醉心于书籍、自然景色与回忆过去的生活。其实是吉辛通过赖克罗夫特的自述，来抒发自己的感情，剖析自己的内心世界。因而本书是一部最富自传色彩的小品文集。吉辛自己穷困的一生，他对文学名著的爱好与追求，对于大自然恬静生活的向往，在书中均有充分的反映。本书分为春、夏、秋、冬四个部分，文笔优美，行文流畅，是英国文学中小品文的珍品之一。
