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Writing America by Shelley Fisher Fishkin
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Reviews

“Big, handsome, well-illustrated ... A book to own and read over and over again.”
Booklist

“Using the National Register of Historic Places as her guide, the author sparks interesting questions regarding how writers influence, and are influenced by, place … Fishkin's book offers a diverse look at our nation's literary landscape and history.”
Publishers Weekly

“Filled to the brim with literary treasures; it is a fine traveling companion for those with a little time to wander - and to wonder about America's literary past.”
—Book Chase

Endorsements

Writing America is a triumph of scholarship and passion, a profound exploration of the many worlds which comprise our national canon . . . a book that redraws the literary map of the United States.”
—Junot Díaz, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

“This book cuts straight to the soul of America in all its shades and colors. I don't think anyone has ever put together a book that's quite so extraordinary. I certainly have never read one.”
—Hal Holbrook, Actor, Mark Twain Tonight!, Author, Harold

“Just when you thought you knew American literature, along comes Shelley Fisher Fishkin to show you what you've missed . . . and to make you think about it. She ushers us into both familiar and unusual spaces with prose as accessible as it is learned, observations that are clear and sometimes quirky, and quotations that prove the synergy between literature and place. She takes American literature out of the library and relocates it in the public square, revealing its essence as the most eloquent tour guide imaginable.”
—David Bradley, author of South Street and The Chaneysville Incident

Writing America presents us with an exquisitely rendered geography, in word and image alike, of the nation's diverse literary heritage.”
—Eric J. Sundquist, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities, Johns Hopkins University

“Smartly introduced, lavishly illustrated, and beautifully designed, Writing America treats the reader to sites associated with American authors and puts houses, landmarks, memorials, and museums into a vivid relationship with texts.”
—Werner Sollors, coeditor with Greil Marcus of A New Literary History of America

“This absorbing and wondrous book is a glorious cornucopia of America's literary memory. Writing America is necessary, delicious, and nourishing food for the American artist, reader and writer.”
—Min Jin Lee, author of Free Food for Millionaires

“What a fine, informative, and welcomed book by Professor Fishkin. In brief, a first class piece of work that has been long in coming. It not only deserves a warm welcome, it is also to be treasured by professionals as well as by beginners.”
—Rolando Hinojosa, novelist and essayist

“Shelley Fisher Fishkin is the best guide you could have through American Literature and the places that inspired it. She writes like an angel. She appreciates the diversity and humor of the American spirit. Read her!”
—Erica Jong, poet and author

 
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