'The Gentle Art of Making Enemies' by James Whistler (1834-1903) is a collection of the most ridiculous reviews of the artist's work and his most caustic responses. The book is based on the minutes of the scandalous case of Whistler v. Ruskin, which took place on November 15, 1878 and became the first public discussion, albeit in legal terms, of the question of the symbolic and financial value of art. Whistler sparkles with bon mots, wittily polemicizing, crafting each caustic note like the most difficult offset plate, thereby creating a kind of 'etchings in prose.' 'The Gentle Art of Making Enemies' is a unique manifesto of the anti-Victorian movement, the artist's first attempt in history to defend his innovative art from ignorant and vulgar criticism, to assert his independence in the emerging new art world, based on sales.