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State by State: A Panoramic Portrait of America Hardcover – September 16, 2008

by Matt Weiland (Author), Sean Wilsey (Author)

130

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“A funny, moving, rousing collection, greater than the sum of its excellent parts.”

—New York Times Book Review

Edited by Matt Weiland and Sean Wilsey, State by State is a panoramic portrait of America and an appreciation of all fifty states (and Washington, D.C.) by fifty-one of the most acclaimed writers in the nation. Contributors include renowned and bestselling authors such as Louise Erdrich, Jonathan Franzen, Ann Patchett, Anthony Bourdain, William T. Vollmann, S.E. Hinton, Dave Eggers, Myla Goldberg, Rick Moody, and Alexander Payne. Inspired by the Depression-era WPA guides and awarded an “A” grade by Entertainment Weekly, these delightful essays on the American character deliver “the full plumage of American life, in all its riotous glory” (The New Yorker).

Print length

608 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Ecco
Publication date

September 16, 2008
Dimensions

6 x 1.39 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

9780061470905
ISBN-13

978-0061470905
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Without leaving home or spending a cent on gas, readers of this book can enjoy a scenic view of the entire U.S. that is as familiar as it is disorienting. Weiland, deputy editor of the Paris Review, and Wilsey, editor-at-large for McSweeney's, have gathered a group of 50 disparate voices to explore not just their experience in America, but the way each state was presented in the American Guide series of the Federal Writers Project in the 1930s, in which the Works Project Administration (WPA), as part of F.D.R's New Deal, put more than 6000 American writers to work creating a portrait of this country. The editors wanted to make a book inspired by the ideals behind the WPA Guides but they also wanted something more personal, more eccentric, and more partial. Obvious heavy-hitters—Dave Eggars (Illinois), Rick Moody (Connecticut), Jhumpa Lahiri (Rhode Island), Barry Hannah (Mississippi), William T. Vollmann (California)—are included, as well as some wonderful surprises. Alison Bechdel's illustrated story about her life after moving to Vermont brilliantly combines personal history with historical fact, as does Charles Bock's essay on growing up and working in his parent's Las Vegas pawnshop. Mohammed Naseehu Ali's tale of life in Michigan, after moving there from Ghana as a teen, illuminates what the unconditionally generous Michigan nature shares with the traditions of his own Hausa-Islamic culture. And Franzen's imaginary interview with the state of New York is perhaps the high point among this collection of beguiling summations of something all the writers share: a love-hate relationship with how their chosen state has changed and evolved during the course of their lives. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

“[State by State] is a funny, moving, rousing collection, greater than the sum of its excellent parts, a convention of literary superdelegates, each one boisterously nominating his or her piece of the Republic.” — New York Times Book Review

“This fascinating collection, inspired by guides in the 1930s and 1940s, includes original essays on each of the states by some of the country’s finest (mostly younger) writers.” — Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“Self-consciously modeled after state guides sponsored by the Federal Writers’ Project in the 1930s, this ambitious effort features a terrific roster of writers.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Fascinating.” — Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“Odds are, reading STATE BY STATE, that you’ll fall for every state a little, even if they remain tremendously hard to explain.” — Los Angeles Times

“This eclectic collection of essays describing the ordinary people and places within our 50 states is as essential as the Rand McNally atlas. Alternately brash and bashful...each literary foray in State by State is well worth the trip. Grade: A.” — Entertainment Weekly

“An enjoyable journey: 50 essays, cartoons and mini-plays, plus an afterward about Washington, DC and a fascinating appendix…all in all, it makes one yearn for a driver’s license and a stretch of open highway.” — New York Post

“Ideal nightstand reading and a welcome reminder of the pluribus behind the unum.” — Salon.com

From the Back Cover

From the bestselling editors of The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup comes an American road trip in book form: original writing on all 50 states by 50 of our finest novelists, journalists, and essayists

Inspired by the example of the legendary WPA American Guide series of the 1930s and '40s, now 50 of our foremost writers have produced original pieces of reportage and memoir that capture the 50 states in our time, creating a fresh portrait of America as it lives and breathes today.

At turns poignant and funny, and always insightful, these 50 writers tell us something lasting and revealing about each state through personal memory or contemporary reporting that captures the essential qualities that make each state its own. With an array of revealing facts and figures comparing the 50 states in a range of surprising measures (toothlessness, military enlistment, suicide), State by State is more than an anthology: It is a classic American road movie in book form.

Featuring original writing on all fifty states

Alabama by George Packer
Alaska by Paul Greenberg
Arizona by Lydia Millet
Arkansas by Kevin Brockmeier
California by William T. Vollmann
Colorado by Benjamin Kunkel
Connecticut by Rick Moody
Delaware by Craig Taylor
Florida by Joshua Ferris
Georgia by Ha Jin
Hawaii by Tara Bray Smith
Idaho by Anthony Doerr
Illinois by Dave Eggers
Indiana by Susan Choi
Iowa by Dagoberto Gilb
Kansas by Jim Lewis
Kentucky by John Jeremiah Sullivan
Louisiana by Joshua Clark
Maine by Heidi Julavits
Maryland by Myla Goldberg
Massachusetts by John Hodgman
Michigan by Mohammed Naseehu Ali
Minnesota by Philip Connors
Mississippi by Barry Hannah
Missouri by Jacki Lyden
Montana by Sarah Vowell
Nebraska by Alexander Payne
Nevada by Charles Bock
New Hampshire by Will Blythe
New Jersey by Anthony Bourdain
New Mexico by Ellery Washington
New York by Jonathan Franzen
North Carolina by Randall Kenan
North Dakota by Louise Erdrich
Ohio by Susan Orlean
Oklahoma by S.E. Hinton
Oregon by Joe Sacco
Pennsylvania by Andrea Lee
Rhode Island by Jhumpa Lahiri
South Carolina by Jack Hitt
South Dakota by Saïd Sayrafiezadeh
Tennessee by Ann Patchett
Texas by Cristina Henríquez
Utah by David Rakoff
Vermont by Alison Bechdel
Virginia by Tony Horwitz
Washington by Carrie Brownstein
West Virginia by Jayne Anne Phillips
Wisconsin by Daphne Beal
Wyoming by Alexandra Fuller

and an afterword on Washington, D.C.: A Conversation with Edward P. Jones

About the Author

Matt Weiland is the Deputy Editor of The Paris Review. He has been an editor at Granta, The Baffler and The New Press, and he oversaw a documentary radio unit at NPR. His writing has appeared in the New York Times Book Review, New York Observer, The Nation and The New Republic. He is the co-editor, with Sean Wilsey, of The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup and, with Thomas Frank, of Commodify Your Dissent: The Business of Culture in the New Gilded Age. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.

SEAN WILSEY, the author of a memoir, Oh the Glory of It All, and an essay collection, More Curious, is at work on a translation of Luigi Pirandello’s Uno, Nessuno e Centomila for Archipelago Books and a documentary film about 9/11, IX XI, featuring Roz Chast, Griffin Dunne, and many others (www.ixxi.nyc).

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0061470902
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ecco; Edition Unstated (September 16, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 608 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780061470905
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0061470905
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.84 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.39 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,260,591 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #606 in General Western US Travel Guides
- #2,885 in American Fiction Anthologies
- #7,545 in Travelogues & Travel Essays

Customer Reviews:
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Lynsay Sands
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Lynsay Sands is the nationally bestselling author of the Argeneau/Rogue Hunter vampire series, as well as numerous historicals and anthologies. She’s been writing since grade school and considers herself incredibly lucky to be able to make a career out of it. Her hope is that readers can get away from their everyday stress through her stories, and if there are occasional uncontrollable fits of laughter, that’s just a big bonus. Please visit her on the web at www.lynsaysands.net.
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Frederick S. Goethel

Magnificent Collection of Essays about Our Great Country

Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2008

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This book is a compilation of essays; one written directly for each state in the United States. Each is written by a different author that has a connection directly to the state that the author is writing about, which authenticates the essays as truly wonderful works about the states they know, and in most case, love.

Some of the essays are long, while some are fairly short. Some cover large geographical areas and some cover minute portions of the state. And each has a particular slant about the state that is unique to each essay. From covering life along the Merritt Parkway as a youth in Connecticut to living in the desert in Arizona, each essay presents a look into the wonders of the state that you won't find in any other form of travel writing.

Having lived in a number of states, and having traveled to all of them rather extensively, I can attest to the creativity and unique look that each essay provides at each of the states. In many cases, I was getting nostalgic and reliving the memories I had of a particular state. I was reminded of why each state is different, but also so similar.

While you may not like every essay, and I am sure each person will find a few to love and a few to hate, varying by the individual reader, this book is a great look at the United States. If, like me, you like short stories and essays, this will be a book you will treasure. I highly recommend this book to all, as it is a wonderful way to learn about the country without leaving the comfort of your home.

12 people found this helpful

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R. Crippen

Contemporary Writing

Reviewed in the United States on November 23, 2008

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"State by State, a Panoramic Portrait of America," edited by Matt Weiland and Sean Wilsey -
Surely this is no great book but it has a fascination. Fifty contemporary writers piece together essays on each of the 50 states. The concept is attention-catching. The editors no doubt are themselves disappointed by some of the results - some of the writers miss their mark widely. If the essays were not in this collection, some would not be recognized as portraits of a state. Kansas is incidental to Jim Lewis' essay, which is more closely focused on the Coyote Club at Wichita. Philip Connors offers a close (and slightly bitter) look at Minnesota's southwest corner, which is rarely a part of Minnesota literature.
"State by State" would bring little to someone (an immigrant) seeking to learn more of America. If you know the land, however, if you know the territory, you will not feel cheated. Often you may be moved to mutter to a writer, "You should be able to do better than this."

5 people found this helpful

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Jennifer

Uneven But Interesting

Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2013

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As with all collections with essays by various authors, the results are somewhat uneven. However, I can't imagine anyone who lives in or has traveled extensively in the United States not being interested in how the states they have lived in or visited are portrayed. I was thrilled that Anthony Bourdain took on my home state of New Jersey (and did a good job with it), and I thought it fitting that Oregon's entry was one of the few in the form of a "comic" strip (which prominently featured rain and umbrellas). Looking back now, the essay I remember the most fondly was Dave Eggers's take on Illinois. Although I read this book straight through, I think the better approach would be to read one or two states a day--or just dip your toes in every so often. In addition to the essays, there are little factoids about each state that were interesting in their own right.

5 people found this helpful

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L.B. Montes

50-50

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2008

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Some very fine writing indeed. The essays should be savored slowly, one at a time, with plenty of time in between. After reading this book, I feel compelled to visit some states I had no interest in seeing before, and plan to avoid some others! Although a few essays are forgettable, (like the one on Maryland, which was colorless, just like the state itself) and some I would like to forget (California was so offensive I ripped the pages out; Pennsylvania and Connecticut were sad stories), many are written with reverence, some with humor, and some are just plain gorgeous! I was surprised at how dead-on accurate some essays were in capturing characteristics of familiar locales--the local culture of Key West, Florida, for example, or the lack of neighborliness in Massachusetts. Favorites of mine included Illinois, Iowa, North Carolina and Maine. The essay on South Dakota was unfortunate. Being written by a New Yorker, it ended up being about New York, of course. But all in all, it is a beautiful tome.

5 people found this helpful

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shez

Heartfelt stories

Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2019

Verified Purchase

Illustrative writing of various states. Unfortunately I cannot live in every state, but I often wonder what each is like. Some of the authors are very relatable on what it is like to have deep emotional connections to places and people as varied as the different states in the US. Living vicariously at its finest.

One person found this helpful

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nancy parrigin

Did some of them understand what was asked of them?

Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2016

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Sorry i couldn't rate this higher because some of the entries did deserve five stars. Hosever, too many of the writers were show-offs, not really taking the challenge that was given them.

One person found this helpful

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Woody

I enjoyed the book and gained an appreciation for some of ...

Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2015

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Many chapters were obviously written to illustrate the exaggerated "creative writing" skills of the individual writers. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the book and gained an appreciation for some of the states I have not visited,

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Rob Placek

Delightful and Patriotic

Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2016

Verified Purchase

This is an amazing collection of essays. It is diverse in its inclusion of different authors and completely different writing styles and topics, even though all of the essays reflect a special part of the author's heart devoted to each of our great 50 states. Possibly my favorite American essay collection.

2 people found this helpful

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Alar

Molto noioso

Reviewed in Italy on December 5, 2016

Verified Purchase

Alcuni racconti sono simpatici e si leggono abbastanza velocemente ma la maggior parte sono noiosissimi. Non riesco a finire di leggerlo da quanto noioso. L'ho acquistato perchè ne avevo sentito parlare bene ma lo sconsiglio. Spedizione sempre ottima.

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a.j.marston

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 25, 2014

Verified Purchase

excellent deal

Avalokiteshvara

Wunderbar poetisch und vielfältig

Reviewed in Germany on November 26, 2008

Verified Purchase

Die USA als Mikrokosmos, das ist die Idee dieses Bandes voll mit Geschichten aus den 50 Staaten. Und die sind so verschieden wie die Menschen dieses großen Landes. Einige Geschichten schnell, andere poetisch, wieder andere illustriert. Ein gelungenes Panorama, das durch interessante statistische Angaben zu den einzelnen Ländern ergänzt wird, so dass man sich ein Bild machen kann, wo der jeweilige Staat steht, wie sich die Bevölkerung zusammensetzt und - wie hoch die Rekrutierungsraten für das Militär sind. In Deutschland sicher eine etwas befremdliche Statistik, aber ok, so ist das in Amerika eben.
Besonders hinweisen möchte ich auf die brilliante Geschichte, die New Mexico zum Gegenstand hat. Eine poetische Reise zweier Menschen in einem sonst wenig bekannten Staat. Wunderbar geschrieben von Ellery Washington. Mehr davon!

4 people found this helpful

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ernst

very boring

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 10, 2012

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This book i expected to be an appendage to how the states got their shapes, instead it was boring ramble about authors remembrance of experiances and anidotes of personel and family incidents.

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