The Writer's Presence: A Pool of Readings [Paperback]

Donald McQuade (Author), Robert Atwan (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0312433867 | ISBN-13: 978-0312433864 | Publication Date: January 11, 2006 | Edition: 5th

The Writer's Presence combines great writing with a simple organization and uncluttered presentation to give instructors the widest range of options. Each selection showcases a writer's unique voice to demonstrate how writers present themselves through their work and to provide students with models they can use to develop their own voices. Arranged alphabetically by author and by five types of writing (informal, personal, expository, and argumentative writing, as well as short fiction) and with minimal apparatus, the readings allow instructors to be flexible and allow the writing to speak for itself.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

DONALD MCQUADE is professor of English and former dean of undergraduate studies at the University of California, Berkeley; he currently serves as Vice Chancellor of University Affairs. A past chair of CCCC, he has directed the writing programs at Berkeley and at Queens College, CUNY, and has published widely on American literature, American culture, and composition theory and practice. With his daughter Christine, he is coeditor of Seeing & Writing, now in its third edition from Bedford/St. Martin's.

ROBERT ATWAN founded the Best American Essays series, for which he serves as series editor. His essays and reviews have appeared in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Atlantic Monthly, and Kenyon Review. For Bedford/St. Martin's, he has edited Ten on Ten: Major Essayists on Recurring Themes; Our Times: Readings from Recent Periodicals, now in its fifth edition, America Now: Short Readings from Recent Periodicals, now in its sixth edition, and Convergences, now available in its second edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 960 pages
• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's; 5th edition (January 11, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312433867
• ISBN-13: 978-0312433864
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #180,671 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert Atwan is the founder and series editor of the annual Best American Essays. The editor of numerous anthologies, he has written on the ancient literature of the Near East and his critical essays and poetry reviews have appeared in many national periodicals. Laurance Wieder is the author of several volumes of poetry, including The Coronet of Tours; No Harm Done; The Last Century: Selected Poems; and One Hundred Fifty Psalms, a complete psalter. He has taught Bible and Ancient Authors at Cornell University.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a PHENOMENAL collection of phenomenal writing., August 7, 2006

By 

NaughtiLiterati (NYC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Writer's Presence: A Pool of Readings (Paperback)

I found this book at my favorite bookstore and have been reading it from cover to cover since. Though it's apparently used for classes, if you love reading and especially writing, then this book has ALL examples of the finest in every category. It is a winner and I only put it down to write this brief review! I am so glad that I picked it up, I saw others but they dull in comparison. I have the 4th edition and don't really see the need for the 5th since I'm reading it for pleasure and it's much cheaper and easier to find too! I hope that you enjoy it as much as I am right now.

18 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Many of the writings are in the public domain, making this book a typical college textbook rip-off!, December 15, 2007

By 

J (Rural Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Writer's Presence: A Pool of Readings (Paperback)

This book was required for a writing class I took in college. I am not rating based on the quality of the writings, but on another matter. One interesting thing about this collection is that so many of the works contained in this book are in the public domain and can easily be read online for free or bought elsewhere in print for much cheaper. Or use the public library!

Examples:
The Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson
Second Inaugural Address by Abraham Lincoln
Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr.
Learning to Read and Write by Frederick Douglass

And many more, plus magazine article reprints that are often put online for free reading.

I just wanted to make potential buyers aware of this fact before dumping close to $60 into something in which much of its contents are free. I bet you could buy all the copyrighted works in individual print separately for far less than this collection as a whole.

Like nearly all textbooks, this book is a true rip-off, and costs far more than it is worth. If it wasn't used in college, it would probably be a $20 book, if that. If your class requires it, then I guess you are a victim like the rest of us, be sure to buy used. If you are not required to buy it, don't! Don't support the publishers that gouge the students just because they know they can get away with it! Just my 2 cents.

****EDIT: 8/21/10*****
Good to see the price this book is selling for has dropped to next to nothing. Unfortunatly that probably just means the publisher put out a newer edition and colleges are requiring that one instead.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great teaching tool and essays, February 10, 2009

By 

Florence "=)" (new jersey, usa) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Writer's Presence 5e & ix visual exercises (Paperback)

I first encountered this book in AP Literature in high school. Then I bought this book because I loved the personal essays. There are questions in the back of each essay for you to analyze the writing piece and it really helps to make you think about how an author presents an idea.