Exploring American Literature and Performances - Best Books & Shows for Cultural Enthusiasts | Perfect for Book Clubs, Theater Lovers & Travel Inspiration
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Description
As the title suggests, Poirier (distinguished professor emeritus, Rutgers University) believes that the US has been uncommonly hospitable to literary and artistic experimentation. With analytical daring and shrewd literary delicacy, he advances this theme in biographical and literary studies of Emerson, Whitman, Melville, Mailer, and other American writers. He also gives accounts of the significance of several artists and performers, and discusses myths of America by outside observers. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Reviews
- Verified Buyer
Dense. Deep. That Poirier knows his stuff. He knows it cold, and he's been doing a lot of thinking about American authors, too. He's got some fine ideas about them. And a mighty big vocabulary he uses in expressing those ideas. What he hasn't got is any way into his thinking for people who don't know as much as he does. He doesn't talk down to this uninitiated reader; he simply ignores him/her. I confess I could only get about halfway through his latest, and I'm the kind of reader who doesn't quit lightly. So while I found some good stuff in here -- his writings on Whitman especially -- I got tired of having to reread everything twice. Maybe you'll have more patience.
