A Certain Somewhere: Writers on the Places They Remember [Hardcover]

Robert Wilson (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 5, 2002

A Certain Somewhere collects thirty essays originally published in Preservation magazine. Writers were asked to describe a place that is significant to them, to decipher what makes it mysterious and meaningful, and to examine the nature of attachment to a specific locale.

Gathered here are pieces by writers of all kinds---essayists, novelists, literary critics, poets---on disparate and enthralling places, from Madison Smartt Bell on Haiti to Thomas Mallon on the New York Public Library. These writers examine how they came to invest a part of themselves in the places they have inhabited, and how these places have consequently inhabited them. Most of all, the writers transport you to places that have enchanted them and will charm you as well.

This multifarious assembly offers readers a sophisticated armchair-travel experience, replete with insights into culture, politics, architecture, and history. Along the way, readers will also enjoy a glimpse at the inner lives of some of our finest writers.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

These 30 essays collected by Wilson, who edits Preservation magazine, where the articles were originally published, reflect the importance of place in the lives of humans. As different from one another as the contrast between a refuge found by Phyllis Rose in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art ("Metropolitan Hideaways") and Suzanne Freeman's heartfelt reminiscence of her grandmother's home in Murfreesboro, Tenn. ("The Museum of Who We Were"), these pieces are all equally engaging. Several of the essays concentrate on the relationship between the writers' craft and where they choose to practice it. Thomas Mallon researched material for his books at the New York Public Library on 42d Street and Fifth Avenue and recalls in "Paradise Regained" his unwarranted anxiety that the reading room, "as romantic as any place in the city" would be drastically changed during a lengthy period of renovation. In "Building for the Ages," Stephen Goodwin describes how he built a cabin in Virginia as a place to work in, but wound up writing many of his books elsewhere. Of particular interest is "The Spirit of Maui," Reeve Lindbergh's evocation of the Hawaiian island that was so important to her terminally ill father that he traveled from New York to die there. On a less serious note is Ann Beattie's "Hiding Out in Ma¤analand," a tribute to Key West, one of the "comfortable repositories for the dis-located." In all, these selected essays form a delightful whole.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This collection of 31 essays from Preservation magazine's column "Place," which debuted in 1996, features pieces from an array of talented contributors (including Noel Perrin, Anthony Walton, and Anita Desai) writing about an array of places (including Haiti, a stone wall in Vermont, and McKinney, TX). Place and preservation are closely tied, as each author writes about (and thus preserves) a place that has strongly affected his or her development. Edited by Preservation magazine editor Wilson, who also serves as the book review editor for USA Today, the collection functions less as a cohesive unit than as a series of jumping-off points for discussion or armchair travel. This results from a certain sameness of tone: whether the subject is Maui or Maine, the overarching feeling is celebratory. Nevertheless, this book is a good addition to larger public libraries. Audrey Snowden, formerly with Clark Univ., Worcester,
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Random House; 1st edition (November 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 037550849X
• ISBN-13: 978-0375508493
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #974,166 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A Marvelous Little Book, March 2, 2003

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Neil Scott Mcnutt (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Certain Somewhere: Writers on the Places They Remember (Hardcover)

In approximately 242 short pages, this fine book presents essays about the experiences of 30 authors who wrote vignettes about places that were very special ones in their lives. They were written between 1996 and 2002 for Preservation magazine,. These places vary from the faraway ones, such as Maui or the Al Qahira section of Cairo, down to the nearby ones, such as a stone wall on a Vermont farm. Each of the essays is quite short and written in a tight style that is direct and fun to read. The marvelous details in some of these stories give you a new way of looking at the familiar things and places in your own life. Many of the authors have passed through New York or New England and have interesting insights into these areas. The book is enjoyable on several levels. You not only get a tour of the place itself but also you also gain insight into the psychological meanings of the place to the author. It is the kind of book that you should enjoy at a leisurely pace, such as one essay per day, to savor the contents and let them sink into you.

4.0 out of 5 stars A Gentle and Easy Read, Excellent for Relaxing., February 10, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: A Certain Somewhere: Writers on the Places They Remember (Hardcover)

I've read a lot of travel essays and anthologies, and this was a fairly good one. In this collection, authors remember various places; their childhood home towns, their favorite rooms in the public library, grandma's back porch. The reminisces are sentimental, and that's fine, because thats what fond memories are. Its an easy book to read, and good for relaxing between more challenging literature.

If you prefer something with a bit more meat to it, however, the "Best Travel Writing" series may be more your to your liking.