Customer Reviews

The Norton Book of Personal Essays

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If this weren't so heavy, I would carry it everywhere. Jam-packed with brilliant, insightful writing. I defy anyone to read Mark Twain's ``Italian Without a Master'' (the first essay in this compilation) and NOT laugh out loud. David Sedaris's essays, much as I love them, are a pale imitation of this Twain masterpiece.

Joseph Epstein is an intersting author who has taken the art of the Personal Essay to a higher Realm. In this book, he has chosen a variety of authors who have similarly treated this art form, and presents a delightful collection of the same. An enjoyable read for people who enjoy good literary style. Included authors include Twain, Beerbohm, Woolf, Parker, Orwell, Fitzgerald, Connolly, Greene, Capote, Baldwin, Naipaul, Tan, etc.. Try it out!

Joseph Epstein is a master of the personal essay. His books on 'Envy' and 'Friendship' are extended exercises in this form. I just today read another masterful essay of his, this one on 'Turning Seventy'. For the Norton Anthology he writes a preface on the Personal Essay as a means of discovery. He chooses about fifty essays from many of those most closely identified with the form from Mark Twain , Edmund Wilson, E.B. White, Dorothy Parker, Anne Dillard, Joan Didion, A.B. Leibling, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Amy Tan, and many others. Epstein also includes an amusing essay of his own ' I love a Gershwin Tune'.
There is a lot of pleasurable reading in this excellent anthology.

It is a required textbook for my essay course in my college. It has various subjects and greatly help me to understand how to draft different types of essays. No matte you are an English learner or not, it is a great read too, even if you only want to enjoy some good readings.

The book I purchased was timely delivered. The quality of the book was as described. Excellent condition. The price was great!

It's a pretty good book, perfect condition. I needed it for my English class. It contains a great variety of talented writers.