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Back Home: Journeys through Mobile
After twenty years in New York City, a prize-winning writer takes a "long look back" at his hometown of Mobile, Alabama.
In Back Journeys through Mobile , Roy Hoffman tells stories—through essays, feature articles, and memoir—of one of the South's oldest and most colorful port cities. Many of the pieces here grew out of Hoffman's work as Writer-in-Residence for his hometown newspaper, the Mobile Register , a position he took after working in New York City for twenty years as a journalist, fiction writer, book critic, teacher, and speech writer. Other pieces were first published in the New York Times , Southern Living , Preservation , and other publications. Together, this collection comprises a long, second look at the Mobile of Hoffman's childhood and the city it has since become.
Like a photo album, Back Home presents close-up portraits of everyday places and ordinary people. There are meditations on downtown Mobile, where Hoffman's grandparents arrived as immigrants a century ago; the waterfront where longshoremen labor and shrimpers work their nets; the back roads leading to obscure but intriguing destinations. Hoffman records local people telling their own tales of race relations, sports, agriculture, and Mardi Gras celebrations. Fishermen, baseball players, bakers, authors, political figures--a strikingly diverse population walks across the stage of Back Home .
Throughout, Hoffman is concerned with stories and their enduring nature. As he writes, "When buildings are leveled, when land is developed, when money is spent, when our loved ones pass on, when we take our places a little farther back every year on the historical time-line, what we have still are stories."
In Back Journeys through Mobile , Roy Hoffman tells stories—through essays, feature articles, and memoir—of one of the South's oldest and most colorful port cities. Many of the pieces here grew out of Hoffman's work as Writer-in-Residence for his hometown newspaper, the Mobile Register , a position he took after working in New York City for twenty years as a journalist, fiction writer, book critic, teacher, and speech writer. Other pieces were first published in the New York Times , Southern Living , Preservation , and other publications. Together, this collection comprises a long, second look at the Mobile of Hoffman's childhood and the city it has since become.
Like a photo album, Back Home presents close-up portraits of everyday places and ordinary people. There are meditations on downtown Mobile, where Hoffman's grandparents arrived as immigrants a century ago; the waterfront where longshoremen labor and shrimpers work their nets; the back roads leading to obscure but intriguing destinations. Hoffman records local people telling their own tales of race relations, sports, agriculture, and Mardi Gras celebrations. Fishermen, baseball players, bakers, authors, political figures--a strikingly diverse population walks across the stage of Back Home .
Throughout, Hoffman is concerned with stories and their enduring nature. As he writes, "When buildings are leveled, when land is developed, when money is spent, when our loved ones pass on, when we take our places a little farther back every year on the historical time-line, what we have still are stories."
394 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 2, 2024
A delightful collection of articles and shorts featuring Mobile and Mobile connections. I'm happy to say that this book published in 2001 shows a bleak picture of downtown Mobile that has now been turned mostly around.
July 2, 2025
There were some seriously good parts of the book, and there were some boring parts, However, this one played a family research role. My paternal grandmother was born in Mobile, Alabama, but my little sister and I never got the chance to ask her for her story of who our ancestors were. I'm still trying to find out who our great grandparents were.
Those are my problems, but the reader should learn plenty about Mobile, and the area from Roy Hoffman's book. I did, and would recommend it to anyone considering moving, or vacationing, there. I spent one night there in a motel directly opposite the USS Alabama in 1982, but didn't think I had the time to explore the area. I regret that now, and Back Home pounded the poor insight of that decision home.
Hoffman wrote very good travel content, but unfortunately, I had personal objectives here. Never mind me. If you're looking to know the area, and a lot of its history, people, and culture you should start here. Back Home gives a strong overview of Mobile.
I got the impression that Hoffman is essentially a short story writer, and that's fine. He did a good job when that perspective is recognized. I did not read it straight through. It's not a quick read but enjoyed with frequent breaks. I was there long enough to envision some of the environment. That helped, and gave me something of a vacation in my mind.
Those are my problems, but the reader should learn plenty about Mobile, and the area from Roy Hoffman's book. I did, and would recommend it to anyone considering moving, or vacationing, there. I spent one night there in a motel directly opposite the USS Alabama in 1982, but didn't think I had the time to explore the area. I regret that now, and Back Home pounded the poor insight of that decision home.
Hoffman wrote very good travel content, but unfortunately, I had personal objectives here. Never mind me. If you're looking to know the area, and a lot of its history, people, and culture you should start here. Back Home gives a strong overview of Mobile.
I got the impression that Hoffman is essentially a short story writer, and that's fine. He did a good job when that perspective is recognized. I did not read it straight through. It's not a quick read but enjoyed with frequent breaks. I was there long enough to envision some of the environment. That helped, and gave me something of a vacation in my mind.
September 25, 2017
This was an easy read, full of profiles of people from Mobile, Alabama. I enjoyed them all and found myself going back to certain ones.
I read about my Soror Alexis Herman, who was U.S.Secretary of Labor. Apparently, she was always Miss It in Mobile, and I mean that title in the best way.
It was fun to read about Mardi Gras in Mobile. That was an eye opener. I always associated the holiday with NOLA.
Roy Hoffman was back in his hometown as writer in residence after having a successful career in NYC. He sought out the most Mobile-esque people, and the most unusual.
Alabama as a state has this terrible image from slavery, but Hoffman treats his home state as even handed as possible. Most of the black people were ex-patriots.
One profile I lived was the bar pilot. These are the people who steer freighters into port. Mobile has an approach on the gulf of Mexico that is full of sand bars. A ship could ground and that would be a disaster. So these pilot have the job of getting them safety in port.
I recommend this book. It is like going to a different world especially for a Northener like myself.
I read about my Soror Alexis Herman, who was U.S.Secretary of Labor. Apparently, she was always Miss It in Mobile, and I mean that title in the best way.
It was fun to read about Mardi Gras in Mobile. That was an eye opener. I always associated the holiday with NOLA.
Roy Hoffman was back in his hometown as writer in residence after having a successful career in NYC. He sought out the most Mobile-esque people, and the most unusual.
Alabama as a state has this terrible image from slavery, but Hoffman treats his home state as even handed as possible. Most of the black people were ex-patriots.
One profile I lived was the bar pilot. These are the people who steer freighters into port. Mobile has an approach on the gulf of Mexico that is full of sand bars. A ship could ground and that would be a disaster. So these pilot have the job of getting them safety in port.
I recommend this book. It is like going to a different world especially for a Northener like myself.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews