This I Believe:: Philadelphia

by Dan Gediman (Editor), Mary Jo Gediman (Editor), Elisabeth Perez-Luna (Editor)

This I Believe is an international project engaging people in writing, sharing, and discussing the core values that guide their daily lives. And it all started in Philadelphia more than seven decades ago with a local radio series that became an international sensation.
This book features thirty essays from that original 1950s This I Believe radio series, including contributions from publisher and philanthropist Walter Annenberg, classicist and educator Edith Hamilton, anthropologist Margaret Mead, and Pulitzer-winning author James Michener.
Complementing those historical selections are thirty contemporary essays produced through a partnership among This I Believe, WHYY, and Leadership Philadelphia. These essayists include Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Frank Fitzpatrick, Grammy Award winner Kenny Gamble, Philadelphia Mural Arts Program executive director Jane Golden, and Mayor Michael Nutter.
Altogether, this collection is an insightful reflection of the guiding principles that drive the people of Philadelphia, who believe in brotherly love--and so much more.

Genres: Nonfiction, Essays

208 pages, Paperback

First published October 5, 2015

About the author

Dan Gediman is a long-time writer, editor, and public radio producer whose work has been heard on All Things Considered, Morning Edition, Marketplace, Jazz Profiles, and This American Life. During his 30-year radio career, he has won many of public broadcasting’s most prestigious awards including the duPont-Columbia Award.

Dan is currently the Executive Director of This I Believe, Inc. (www.thisibelieve.org), a non-profit organization based in Louisville that is dedicated to helping people explore, write about, and share short essays about the core beliefs that guide their daily lives. Over 150,000 people worldwide have submitted these essays, which have been anthologized into several This I Believe books, co-edited by Dan, including the New York Times Bestseller This I Believe: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women (2006), This I Believe II (2008), This I Believe: On Love (2010), This I Believe: On Fatherhood (2011), This I Believe: Life Lessons (2011), This I Believe: On Motherhood (2012), This I Believe: Kentucky (2013). and their latest book, This I Believe Philadelphia (2015). Dan has also co-edited an anthology of essays from the original 1950s This I Believe radio series entitled Edward R. Murrow's This I Believe (2009).

Dan is currently working on a biography of famed radio icon Norman Corwin, to be published in 2020.

Dan is also an accomplished public speaker who has delivered scores of speeches and training workshops for schools, businesses, and community organizations. For more information or to book Dan as a speaker, please visit www.dangediman.com/public-speaking.

Reviews

[amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would absolutely recommend this book to others. I actually read it twice. The first time I read the book and the second time I listened to an audio book version. The best part about the audio was that all of the stories were read by the original author except for The stories by Anne Frank, Helen Keller, and Albert Einstein. I took in every story and appreciated them all. This is a really well assembled collection. Even stories written by people I don't agree with or regarding ideals/faith that I don't subscribe to gave me insights into the minds of the person writing and had kernels of good ideas and opinions. I actually think I like the audio version better. Some of the stories were pulled from the original show recordings and listening to the subtle cracks and pops and the fuzziness of the vocals were comforting. It's funny to me that so many of the things written in this book (now more than a decade old) are so incredibly important at this moment in America. How writing from so long ago can be so vital a necessary to hear after everything that's happened in the past few years never ceases to amaze me. We always have the wisdom within our reach but we seldom stop to actually consider it. Please read this book.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I received an ARC via Netgalley. I also live in Philadelphia. Furthermore, I teach at the same college, same department, as one of the contributors. (There are at least 100 people attached to my department).

Despite being in Philadelphia for all my life, I have never heard of this series until this popped up on Netgalley. The volume is a collection of short essays by various people from Philadelphia. By and large, the essays are meditative and reflective, usually looking at religion and community, or service and community. The contributors range from politicians (Mayor Nutter) to community activists/workers (Sister Mary Scullion) to the famous (Margaret Mead) to the everyday. Writers, teachers, artists, and religious men and women are included. The essay is divided into voices from the past – the Radio series – and current voices.

It is a rather beautiful collection.

There are also some surprises. I always forget about Edith Hamilton and her connection to the area, hardly surprising because her Mythology is taught in a quasi-vacuum, with little biographic information given. Hamilton’s essay in this volume, “Of Sonnets, Symphonies, and Socrates,” is about mercy, art, and truth of spirit. Perhaps it is too scholarly for some, but seen in light alongside her work on mythology it is a source of a meditation.

John B. Kelly Sr’s essay is no less well written, though it is far less scholarly. The father of Grace Kelly reflects on sports and faith. If you enjoyed the recent book, The Boys in the Boat, you might enjoy this. James Michener’s essay is about brotherhood and sameness. It is connected to the themes of some of his novels. It is nicely read alongside another essay from the volume, “The Anchor of Life” by Theodore Roosevelt III, a reflection on life and family.

The modern writers are no less poetic, though they are more direct in connection to community and service. They are also seemed more varied in terms of religious beliefs, race, and sexuality. There is a wonderful essay by Carmen Febo-San Miguel about race. Frank Fitzpatrick writers about what it means to be of Philadelphia, a city that is often forgotten about in the news, totally left out in the discussions about New York and Washington, DC. Kenneth (Kenny) Gamble’s essay about race and education is important, especially in light of recent books and such series as The Wire. This essay’s themes. It perhaps reaches the ultimate conclusion with Mayor Nutter’s essay about service told via his personal history. There are essays detailing works such as Philadelphia’s Women’s Way as well as the mural arts program.

The use of the two parts as well as the varied authors – rich, poor, white, black, Hispanic, straight, homosexual, teacher – gives an portrait of a city. A more accurate portrait of what it means to be part of that city’s fabric and one connects with those who share that space.