Customer Reviews

Flow: The Life and Times of Philadelphia's Schuylkill River

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm lucky enough to spend a lot of time on rivers--fishing, hiking, watching the currents. But I've never read a more original or interesting portrait of any place (water or land) than FLOW. The short sections (written from the point of view of the Schuylkill)are so detailed they function like stories or lyric essays. This is a book that made me really *feel* the Schuylkill, and I also got to bask in the history of the region, which just made reading the book that much more enjoyable. I think Beth Kephart may have invented her own genre here: the river autobiography. FLOW is a book that will influence outdoor/nature writers for a long time to come.

this book is not what I expected and I am glad because it is more than I expected. having been born in schuylkill township but living most of my life in the west I was intrigued when I read of this book. I thought it would be a straight forward history but it is
a lovely lyrical poem with so many dimensions including history and nature. a wonderful reading experience. if the author reads this thank you!

Flow left me in awe. The Schuylkill River can not only be visualized, it can be touched and smelled and tasted and heard. The river's emotions are raw, gut-wrenching. The river forces one to look at events from a different perspective. The river is all-consuming, sweeping one away in its embrace. Once drawn in, it is nearly impossible to shut the book and walk away.

It is difficult to remember any other book this finely written, this intelligent, this unique. Not only do I recommend this book to Amazon purchasers, I myself will purchase several more copies for Christmas, birthday and holiday gifts for family and friends. Don't miss this one! Add it to your shelf!

Beth Kephart is a remarkable writer and poet. Writing the history of the river from the point of view of the river is not only creative but ingenius. It is so much more than just history; it is inspirational.

I think that The Philadelphia City Paper best described FLOW when it wrote:

"Kephart's well-researched essays provide historical nuance...a prescient contemporary account of the city's history. But it is the narrative poetry, in the taut female voice of the river, which makes this a book to descend into, slowly, with all senses at the ready....Kephart is a master not only of descriptive memory, but of constructing an existential vocabulary."

I would have given it six stars if I could!

Having lived most of my life in the Philadelphia area,I really enjoyed this book about the Schuylkill River.It read like a poem for me and I enjoyed the river's "talking".I thought the historical moments were well chosen .A short but enjoyable read.