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Pieces of the Frame
Pieces of the Frame is a gathering of memorable writings by one of the greatest journalists and storytellers of our time. They take the reader from the backwoods roads of Georgia, to the high altitude of Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico; from the social decay of Atlantic City, to Scotland, where a pilgrimage for art's sake leads to a surprising encounter with history on a hilltop with a view of a fifth of the entire country. McPhee's writing is more than informative; these are stories, artful and full of character, that make compelling reading. They play with and against one another, so that Pieces of the Frame is distinguished as much by its unity as by its variety. Subjects familiar to McPhee's readers―sports, Scotland, conservation―are treated here with intimacy and a sense of the writer at work.
308 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1975
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360 people want to read
About the author
John McPhee
132 books1,866 followersJohn Angus McPhee is an American writer. He is considered one of the pioneers of creative nonfiction. He is a four-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in the category General Nonfiction, and he won that award on the fourth occasion in 1999 for Annals of the Former World (a collection of five books, including two of his previous Pulitzer finalists). In 2008, he received the George Polk Career Award for his "indelible mark on American journalism during his nearly half-century career". Since 1974, McPhee has been the Ferris Professor of Journalism at Princeton University.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
March 31, 2021
If John McPhee was my teacher (at any point), I might not have been a better student, but I certainly would have paid better attention.
This is a collection of magazine pieces and they're dated, but then so am I. As always with McPhee, there's stuff here you might not even think you'd be interested in, until he grabs you. And, as always with McPhee, it's best if I just tell you what I learned.
Like about firewood: The redwood made the error of growing good lumber. The lumber of the giant sequoia is terrible. Be good for nothing if you want to live forever is the message of the giant sequoia.
I learned about high-stakes races for quarter horses (not thoroughbreds). Inevitably, breeding came up. (This is a sad story, so skip to the next paragraph if you are a horse - or other animal - lover). Anyhow, quarter horses are often bred with thoroughbreds to make a faster, more powerful issue. The stud is kept away, letting "teaser" horses do the foreplay, kind of like fluff girls in porn movies (I've heard; not that I would know). Then it goes like this: Handlers-halters in hand-hold the mares and hold the teasers. A teaser is not restrained as he moves close to a mare. He nuzzles her. He rubs against her. He makes deep sexual sounds. His heart pounds. His blood courses. Her blood courses, too. Nostrils flaring, he tries to mount. Forcefully, he is pulled down and away. He is dragged off to a corral. The mare has ovulated and is ready. Teaser stallions do not last long. In a matter of months, they break down psychologically. I don't think I'll read a sadder thing all year. It's Go Man Go who actually gets to do the honors, and even for him it's kind of artificial in the end.
Scotch: Macallan and J. & J. Grant's Glen Grant together form the baseline triumvirate of malt whisky. The apex above them is George & J. G. Smith's The Glenlivet, the finest whisky made in Scotland. Well, I had to try it then. And I did. Just two nights ago, after golf. I cannot disagree.
While McPhee was in Scotland (with his wife and four young daughters) he went to Loch Ness. They were having a picnic there, and McPhee was trying to explain the geology of it all to them. And failing. But: I thought that if they could understand how such phenomena had come to be, they might in turn be able to imagine the great, long lake now before them-Loch Ness-as the sea loch, the arm of the Atlantic, that it once was, and how marine creatures in exceptional variety had once freely moved in and out of it, some inevitably remaining. And yes, he had me, a certain skeptic, almost believing. Especially when he paints this picture of the Loch itself: The water of Loch Ness is so dark with the tints of peat that on a flat-calm day it looks like black glass. Three or four feet below the surface is an obscurity so complete that experienced divers have retreated from it in frustration, and in some cases in fear. . . . Loch Ness is like almost no other lake anywhere. Its shores are formidably and somewhat unnaturally parallel. It has no islands. Its riparian walls go straight down. Its bottom is flat, and in most places is seven hundred feet deep, a mean depth far greater than the mean depth of the North Sea. In other words, a perfect habitat for a monster. Daddy, I want to see the monster.
We follow, then, McPhee and his wife and children in search of the way From Birnam to Dunsinane. And they found it, with the help of a local: Few people seem to realize that there really is a Dunsinane Hill. Shakespeare, he said, took an "n" out and added an "e," but he did not create the hill. And Macbeth too was real. Quoting an historian, McPhee notes the irony that Macbeth, branded with the stain of blood, was actually a pretty nice fellow. It simply was not in him to shout at an enemy here on these ramparts. Still, The race being what it is, we prefer him the second way, and Shakespeare knew what we wanted.
I learned also about the best roadkill to eat and the weirdest places to play basketball and lots of other fun stuff. But I have to go now and check to make sure about that Glenlivet.
This is a collection of magazine pieces and they're dated, but then so am I. As always with McPhee, there's stuff here you might not even think you'd be interested in, until he grabs you. And, as always with McPhee, it's best if I just tell you what I learned.
Like about firewood: The redwood made the error of growing good lumber. The lumber of the giant sequoia is terrible. Be good for nothing if you want to live forever is the message of the giant sequoia.
I learned about high-stakes races for quarter horses (not thoroughbreds). Inevitably, breeding came up. (This is a sad story, so skip to the next paragraph if you are a horse - or other animal - lover). Anyhow, quarter horses are often bred with thoroughbreds to make a faster, more powerful issue. The stud is kept away, letting "teaser" horses do the foreplay, kind of like fluff girls in porn movies (I've heard; not that I would know). Then it goes like this: Handlers-halters in hand-hold the mares and hold the teasers. A teaser is not restrained as he moves close to a mare. He nuzzles her. He rubs against her. He makes deep sexual sounds. His heart pounds. His blood courses. Her blood courses, too. Nostrils flaring, he tries to mount. Forcefully, he is pulled down and away. He is dragged off to a corral. The mare has ovulated and is ready. Teaser stallions do not last long. In a matter of months, they break down psychologically. I don't think I'll read a sadder thing all year. It's Go Man Go who actually gets to do the honors, and even for him it's kind of artificial in the end.
Scotch: Macallan and J. & J. Grant's Glen Grant together form the baseline triumvirate of malt whisky. The apex above them is George & J. G. Smith's The Glenlivet, the finest whisky made in Scotland. Well, I had to try it then. And I did. Just two nights ago, after golf. I cannot disagree.
While McPhee was in Scotland (with his wife and four young daughters) he went to Loch Ness. They were having a picnic there, and McPhee was trying to explain the geology of it all to them. And failing. But: I thought that if they could understand how such phenomena had come to be, they might in turn be able to imagine the great, long lake now before them-Loch Ness-as the sea loch, the arm of the Atlantic, that it once was, and how marine creatures in exceptional variety had once freely moved in and out of it, some inevitably remaining. And yes, he had me, a certain skeptic, almost believing. Especially when he paints this picture of the Loch itself: The water of Loch Ness is so dark with the tints of peat that on a flat-calm day it looks like black glass. Three or four feet below the surface is an obscurity so complete that experienced divers have retreated from it in frustration, and in some cases in fear. . . . Loch Ness is like almost no other lake anywhere. Its shores are formidably and somewhat unnaturally parallel. It has no islands. Its riparian walls go straight down. Its bottom is flat, and in most places is seven hundred feet deep, a mean depth far greater than the mean depth of the North Sea. In other words, a perfect habitat for a monster. Daddy, I want to see the monster.
We follow, then, McPhee and his wife and children in search of the way From Birnam to Dunsinane. And they found it, with the help of a local: Few people seem to realize that there really is a Dunsinane Hill. Shakespeare, he said, took an "n" out and added an "e," but he did not create the hill. And Macbeth too was real. Quoting an historian, McPhee notes the irony that Macbeth, branded with the stain of blood, was actually a pretty nice fellow. It simply was not in him to shout at an enemy here on these ramparts. Still, The race being what it is, we prefer him the second way, and Shakespeare knew what we wanted.
I learned also about the best roadkill to eat and the weirdest places to play basketball and lots of other fun stuff. But I have to go now and check to make sure about that Glenlivet.
December 31, 2024
“How do you like your weasel?” Sam asked me.
“Extremely well done,” I said.
notes: many splendid essays — on georgia, canoeing, monopoly, dunsinane, playing basketball in the tower of london, firewood, and the director of the national park service.
February 23, 2015
John McPhee is one of my favorite writers. I think he is one of the writers who revolutionized the way non-fiction is written, along with Joseph Mitchell, A.J. Liebling, and Truman Capote. His work has a style that is uniquely his, he can make even the most mundane subject interesting, and he usually manages to insert himself into his work without being distracting.
However, this particular book is just average. It could be that since it is a collection of magazine pieces, rather than a book length work of non-fiction, some of the pieces are now a bit dated. Some of the pieces here are very good, like the one on whisky. But some are relics of the 70's, like the one on road kill hunting in georgia, or the travel piece on Atlantic City. Still worthwhile to read, but maybe for McPhee fans only at this point.
However, this particular book is just average. It could be that since it is a collection of magazine pieces, rather than a book length work of non-fiction, some of the pieces are now a bit dated. Some of the pieces here are very good, like the one on whisky. But some are relics of the 70's, like the one on road kill hunting in georgia, or the travel piece on Atlantic City. Still worthwhile to read, but maybe for McPhee fans only at this point.
May 29, 2024
McPhee has always been one of my favorites, but after reading Giving Good Weight last year I've found that I may like his shorter work even better than his long-form ones. Something that struck me in this collection is his ability to conclude a story. Favorite piece is probably the opener 'Travels in Georgia', closer 'Ruidoso' was great too.
"The redwood made the genetic error of growing good lumber. The lumber of the giant sequoia is terrible. Be good for nothing if you want to live forever is the message of the giant sequoia."
- from 'Firewood'
"The redwood made the genetic error of growing good lumber. The lumber of the giant sequoia is terrible. Be good for nothing if you want to live forever is the message of the giant sequoia."
- from 'Firewood'
December 6, 2018
A fine collection that provides the reader with some exemplary McPhee. Several of the articles (all magazine stories originally) retain an odor of the 1970s, but others have aged better. I particularly enjoyed those from McPhee’s family vacation to Scotland, “Pieces of the Frame” (on Nessie) “Josie’s Well” (on Scotch whisky) and “From Birnam Wood to Dunsinane.” Also memorable were “Reading the River,” “Firewood,” and “The Search for Marvin Gardens.”
3.5 stars.
3.5 stars.
February 17, 2019
Incredible at building a sense of place.
December 31, 2022
I mean he's still the greatest American nonfiction author, I can only say that so many times on goodreads. Best essays here are the eponymous loch ness essay, Ruidoso, and the goofy personal one about playing basketball in the tower of London.
There are just so many moments that I think only a real artist of a writer would think to include. The sudden dreamlike flashback in the Loch Ness essay to a childhood memory of a starving bear pacing in a circus cage... poetic, and who else would do it?
There are just so many moments that I think only a real artist of a writer would think to include. The sudden dreamlike flashback in the Loch Ness essay to a childhood memory of a starving bear pacing in a circus cage... poetic, and who else would do it?
December 30, 2017
These are short essays by John McPhee, some of which are more enjoyable than others. "Search for Marvin Gardens," for instance, is one of my favorite pieces of writing ever. "Center Court," on the other hand, I found very boring. John McPhee is a journalist that writes like a novelist, so his stories are only as interesting as the subject matter. This one has pieces about Scotland, sports, Georgia, natural resources and a great one about the game Monopoly.
May 17, 2010
I have read several books by McPhee ranging on topics as diverse as geology, rivers, and Alaska, and he seems to make it incredibly interesting. This grouping of essays does not disappoint. The contents range from the Loch Ness monster, basketball, and Wimbledon. He somehow makes each of these interesting, despite the fact that I am not a sports player, nor do I really care about the Loch Ness monster. I am eagerly awaiting starting his new book of essays!
Want to read
June 4, 2009Travels in Georgia. Reading the River. The Search for Marvin Gardens. Pieces of the Frame. Josie's Well. From Birnam Wood to Dunsinane. Basketball and Beefeaters. Centre Court. Firewood. Ranger. Ruidoso.
July 11, 2014
A good collection of essays - a bit dated in their content (the first is when Jimmy Carter was still Governor of Georgia) but the quality of the writing and the skill of story-telling still shines through.
January 30, 2013
Read the first essay about channelization in the state of Georgia. Simply the best nonfiction piece ever written.
January 19, 2021
I don't really think anyone wants to read my reviews. I would, however, like to keep better track of what I've read - especially by my favorite authors - so I have some notes on this one. This is up there with "Irons in the Fire" as an excellent collection of seemingly unrelated pieces. Firewood was kind of a snooze for me, but the last two pieces were so good it more than made up for it.
Here are the titles of each piece, with a short explanation of what each one is about:
Travels in Georgia - roadkill and natural preservation
Reading the river - 'modern' canoe races
Search for Marvin gardens - Monopoly and Atlantic city
Pieces of the frame - loch ness monster
Josie's well - Scottish malt whiskey
Birnam wood - king macbeth
Basketball and beefeaters - basketball (almost) in the tower of london
firewood - firewood
ranger - profile, the director of nat'l park services
ruidoso - All-American quarter horse racing
Here are the titles of each piece, with a short explanation of what each one is about:
Travels in Georgia - roadkill and natural preservation
Reading the river - 'modern' canoe races
Search for Marvin gardens - Monopoly and Atlantic city
Pieces of the frame - loch ness monster
Josie's well - Scottish malt whiskey
Birnam wood - king macbeth
Basketball and beefeaters - basketball (almost) in the tower of london
firewood - firewood
ranger - profile, the director of nat'l park services
ruidoso - All-American quarter horse racing
December 3, 2019
The Search for Marvin Gardens was the first real creative essay I ever read and I guess I could say because of that, it changed my life. I don't like that phrase because literally every single thing that happens changes your life, but this essay really did. It convinced me that there was space in the field of writing for me, and it was a space that was calling me and a space that I wanted to fill.
I certainly enjoyed that specific essay as well as the rest in this book, but they quickly were swallowed up by other essays that I found more intriguing (Fourth State of Matter, The Case for Reparations, Consider the Lobster etc.) But it will always have a special place in my heart because (pardon the melodrama) this was where my writing journey began.
I certainly enjoyed that specific essay as well as the rest in this book, but they quickly were swallowed up by other essays that I found more intriguing (Fourth State of Matter, The Case for Reparations, Consider the Lobster etc.) But it will always have a special place in my heart because (pardon the melodrama) this was where my writing journey began.
December 1, 2018
I have collected many days of wishing that I could see what John McPhee sees when he travels about then write about it as lucidly as he does. Not gonna happen in this life.
These pieces are from the seventies so they are a little dated but they’re still McPhee through and through. I’ve never set down a piece of his writing without admiring his way with words and without having learned something worthwhile. And I’ve been reading him since these were first published. Recommended!
These pieces are from the seventies so they are a little dated but they’re still McPhee through and through. I’ve never set down a piece of his writing without admiring his way with words and without having learned something worthwhile. And I’ve been reading him since these were first published. Recommended!
July 16, 2025
I can agree that John McPhee is an excellent writer and I understand the praise he gets. It's just that I couldn't really connect with his stories, I felt they lacked something, I don't know exactly what. Furthermore, I'm not much of a nature & travel guy, so I guess this also influences my reading.
To sum it up: great, I get it, but not quite for me.
To sum it up: great, I get it, but not quite for me.
December 1, 2024
Distinct in style. Distinct and diverse in subject matter. Featuring the best story I’ve ever read on the science of firewood, the renegade efforts of a bureaucrat, the day-to-day of a couple of DNR employees, and the tense and intricate workings of an all-american horse race.
November 5, 2025
I enjoyed this book, but it was a little frustrating that the essay that ended up being my favorite by far was the first one. Worse, the first essay sets a tone that the rest of the essays didn't really match with.
December 2, 2017
A. Another great book of essays.
August 14, 2020
Half of these essays were great and half really bored me. I still love John McPhee, but I guess he can't interest me in things I don't care about.
January 3, 2024
Stand outs here are the glimpses of 1970s sporting events and shooting baskets with Jimmy Carter
February 23, 2024
Ruidoso alone is worth the price of admission
July 15, 2021
If you don't know of John McPhee and have a deep curiosity about the world, then you should find out about John McPhee, in my opinion the greatest non-fiction writer. This collection of essays make the point, but would not be my first choice. As one reviewer put it, McPhee is busy "finding out on behalf of the rest of us how some portion of the world works," an here he does that taking on such diverse subjects as the educational value of Georgia road killed creatures, the personality and power of the national leader of the Park Service, along side intimate looks at money saturated horse racing and tennis championships. Whatever subject he takes up he does so with complete openness and thus finds a way to convey respect and fascination that might have be complete unexpected by the reader.
I suggest a shorter book on a specific topic as a McPhee starter book: Oranges, or The Pine Barrens, or Irons in the Fire, or Control of Nature. There are plenty to choose from.
I suggest a shorter book on a specific topic as a McPhee starter book: Oranges, or The Pine Barrens, or Irons in the Fire, or Control of Nature. There are plenty to choose from.
July 3, 2014
These collected articles from Atlantic, or New Yorker magazines focus on his themes of sports, conservation, & Scotland. The 3 about Scotland's Lock Ness, whisky, & Macbeth territory, are extensions of his book about the year he & his family spent on the Isle of Colonsay, _The Crofter & the Laird. _
The last story is about Ruidoso Downs, NM.
The last story is about Ruidoso Downs, NM.
December 28, 2020
Cemented my love for McPhee as one of the great essayists and journalists of modern America, and as one of my favorite writers of all-time. Not 5 stars because it didn't offer the unanimous greatness that I now hold him to.
September 17, 2007
the textbook for long-form non-fiction pieces as far as i'm concerned.
January 21, 2008
One of my all-time favorites.
August 20, 2008
One of the best non-fiction writers, and this is a great introduction to his writing. Essays with a variety of interesting topics including Atlantic City, firewood, and horseracing.
October 11, 2011
Wrong cover. Paperback, but green/blue cover
October 4, 2014
There are some great essays in this book, but I didn't enjoy it as consistently as other McPhee books I have read. The essay on Scotch is pretty amazing.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews