Flow: The Life and Times of Philadelphia's Schuylkill River

by Beth Kephart

From acclaimed writer Beth Kephart, author of A Slant of Sun, comes a short, imaginative telling of the life of the Schuylkill River, which has served as the source of Philadelphia's water, power, industry, and beauty for the city's entire life.  Before that, it fed the indigenous people who preceded William Penn, and has since time immemorial shape our region.

Genres: Poetry, History, Nonfiction

116 pages, Hardcover

First published May 28, 2007

About the author

I'm the award-winning writer of more than two-dozen books in multiple genres—memoir, middle grade and young adult fiction, picture books, history, corporate fable, and books on the making of memoir.

I'm also an award-winning teacher at the University of Pennsylvania, co-founder of Juncture Workshops, and an essayist and critic with work appearing in The New York Times, Life magazine, Ninth Letter, Catapult, The Millions, The Rumpus, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, and elsewhere.

Please visit me at junctureworkshops.com or bethkephartbooks.com.

Reviews

[0 · Rating 1 out of 5]

If the schuykill river could talk, somehow I doubt that it would spout poetic admiration for the political ideals and lifestyles of the European colonists who showed up in only the last 300 years of its ancient existence, and who quickly polluted and killed most signs of life in it...

[Laura Bang · Rating 2 out of 5]

An "autobiography" of the Schuylkill River told in a series of short vignettes, with footnotes on most of them to add some (slight) context and a bibliography to find more traditional histories of the region. My main problem was with the "voice" of the river—it seemed way more opionionated than I expect a river to be.... I get the river being upset by human actions and the ecological damages they cause, but I just don't think a river would care about individual humans very much (let alone think that George Washington was the best: "I'm telling you: There was none greater."). Also, a lot of the vignettes were too vague or opaque for me to figure out quite what they were getting at. If you're a local or have a connection to the Philadelphia region, you might find it interesting, but I think it lacks broader appeal.

[Claire Binkley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to have a better grip on local history, and this is a new book, so I read it quick-like, as I've gone by Boathouse Row every week for three years. I think I want to glance at some of the references in the back, but this book, to be blunt, does not have much.

It might be the sparseness of the text which didn't make me fond.

[James Townsend · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking for a straight history book, which this is not, per se. However, it is very entertaining. Each page consists of a short paragraph written from the perspective of the river, followed by a footnote explaining the historical context for it. It's a very interesting concept and seems like something that would be interesting for creative nonfiction writing students to read.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

_Flow_ is a series of short paragraphs written from the perspective of the Schuylkill River, in the River's voice. It's a kind of biography of the river, filled with wondrous facts leaned from various texts. It is also illustrated. It was fun to flip through and read.

[Nathan]

The footnotes are more interesting than the prose-poem chapters in this "autobiography" of the Schuylkill River.

[Karen R. Dickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Imagine a history and an elegant poem-like prose narration from an old river. What a wonderful tome and testament to nature's bounty, man's destructive qualities, and his attempts at redemption and resurrection The footnotes contained actual history, and I found I liked reading the 'river's' voice more after having read the footnote. Note: the footnotes are printed in about 6 point, so get a magnifying glass if you need it!

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

this has exposed me to nature autobiography which i think is an interesting and engaging tool to get someone to connect with the land. i'm not a huge fan of some of the lenses that the author was writing with.

[Miriam Fisher · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wish there was an option for ZERO stars. Completely idiotic and contrived

[partisan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this.