[1] Fredman's Epistles is a collection of 82 poems set to music; it depicts everything from Rococo-themed pastorale with a cast of gods and demigods from classical antiquity to laments for the effects of Brännvin-drinking, tavern-scenes, and apparent improvisations.

People play at worshipping Bacchus, the god of wine, and Venus, the goddess of love, splendidly attired in masquerade costume, but grief-stricken at life's sorrows under their painted masks.

In Lönnroth's opinion, Bellman too concealed himself behind many masks, working as a troubadour to entertain people with songs and imitated voices in drinking-places, accompanying himself on his cittern, but also taking on other roles such as satirist, religious poet, and court playwright.

Lönnroth describes how Bellman's varied performance skills enabled him to construct the highly original and complex Fredman's Epistles, ingeniously contrasting the classically sublime and romantic with the mundane and absurd world of 18th century Stockholm.

The Epilogue is illustrated with a double-page spread of halftone photographs of musicians such as Fred Åkerström, Sven-Bertil Taube, Cornelis Vreeswijk and Martin Bagge interpreting Bellman's work.

for Gotlands Allehanda, Inger Dahlman wrote that Lönnroth was dispelling the dominant 200 year old myth created by Johan Henric Kellgren that Bellman was always speaking for himself in Fredman's Epistles, whereas the reverse was the case, he uninterruptedly played carefully-crafted roles.

Cullhed comments that Lönnroth touches so briefly on so many texts that depth can be lacking; and his attempt not to make the book a biography hadn't worked as the path of Bellman's life is visible from start to end.

[9] Stålmarck states that Fredmans Epistles rightly take a central place in the book, but that Bellman's lesser-known works, like Bacchi Tempel, are also covered, offering the reader something new and surprising.