In the liner notes of the album's re-release, journalist Michael Hill compared the confessional lyrics of "Her Handwriting" to Joni Mitchell's "Blue": "so startlingly specific in its narratives that one could practically retrace Bobby and Anne Mari's steps from the lyrical clues contained in a song like 'Abba on the Jukebox.' Yet, as with Mitchell, Wratten's work didn't feel unduly self-absorbed, just remarkably frank. He made palpable the joys and terrors of falling in - and out - of love. The details made his songs feel more authentic and compelling, familiar to anyone who's ever longed for another, especially someone determined to remain out of reach." The seven-minute "Abba on the Jukebox" contains chintzy drum machine beats, a brief, high-toned guitar phrase and sighing backing vocals, with lyrics solely comprising a list of memories spent with a partner. Tom Ewing of "Freaky Trigger" said of the song's lyrics: "What Rob Wratten discovered with the Field Mice is that if you say something plainly enough, your words work harder and you can give the most ordinary phrases the emotional weight of novels. What he discovered with 'Abba on the Jukebox' is that you didn’t even have to go that far – what makes this song so poignant is that the loss between the lines, the knowledge that these things he's describing can't ever return or be remade, goes unmentioned." Jason Ankeny of AllMusic wrote that the song "easily captures the evocative grandeur of its title," while also highlighting "For This One" as shimmering "with breathtaking loveliness." Released in May 1996, "Her Handwriting" was the first album released on Shinkansen Recordings, an indie label newly established by Matt Haynes after retiring Sarah Records after 100 releases; an edited version of "Abba on the Jukebox" had been released as a single to critical acclaim the previous month. The album title references the lyric "that's her handwriting, that's the way she writes" from the Go-Between's song "Part Company" from their album "Spring Hill Fair" (1984). Wratten explained: "There was a couple of things on there that it is referencing. One is the Go Betweens which I like. It was also a nice name for the record as it was break up record." The album packaging is somewhat ambiguous with its lack of production credits or recording information; Hill later reflected: "Her Handwriting" was released to unanimous acclaim from music critics.