Encounters with Kierkegaard is a collection of every known eyewitness account of the great Danish thinker. Through many sharp observations of family members, friends and acquaintances, supporters and opponents, the life story of this elusive and remarkable figure comes into focus, offering a rare portrait of Kierkegaard the man.

Often viewed by his contemporaries as a person who deliberately cultivated an air of mystery and eccentricity, Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) has been, then and now, a subject of great speculation. His startling attack on the established...