Край земли: Прогулка по Провинстауну

Crown Journeys Series

by Michael Cunningham, Майкл Каннингем, Сергей Кумыш (Translator)

“Край земли” — единственная документальная книга американского писателя Майкла Каннингема. Она посвящена Провинстауну, городу на полуострове Кейп-Код, ставшему в середине XX века богемным и туристическим центром Восточного побережья. Сам Каннингем попал на Кейп-Код в восьмидесятых и с тех пор часто возвращается туда. В своей книге он путешествует по любимым местам, от пляжей, болот и дюн до аптеки и ресторана, рассказывает об обычных жителях Провинстауна и о знаменитостях, живших там.

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, Memoir, History, LGBT, Essays, Gay

224 pages, Hardcover

First published August 6, 2002

About the author

Michael Cunningham is the author of the novels A Home at the End of the World, Flesh and Blood, The Hours (winner of the Pen/Faulkner Award & Pulitzer Prize), Specimen Days, and By Nightfall, as well as the non-fiction book, Land's End: A Walk in Provincetown. His new novel, The Snow Queen, will be published in May of 2014. He lives in New York, and teaches at Yale University.

Reviews

[Candi · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

“Provincetown is an impoverished mother, gentle and loving; an old ribald mother who’s been through too much to be shocked by any habits you’ve acquired in the larger world and who will share with you whatever she’s got, though she lives on little herself and can’t keep much food in the house these days.”

I’ve only read one Michael Cunningham novel so far but was dazzled by the writing so much that I immediately added nearly all of his books to my list, including this gorgeously penned travel memoir. Remember when you could travel without fear of infection and mingle with others without the hindrance of a face mask? I do, and I so wish I could jump in my car and head to Cape Cod and Provincetown this summer. I suppose I could still do so, but for now I grabbed this book and it was deeply satisfying, both for the images evoked as well as the prose. I’ve been to Provincetown twice, once as a teen and once as an adult with young children in tow. I don’t recall being able to indulge in either of Cunningham’s professed pleasures on either of my visits! I need to go back and experience it more fully.

“Provincetown is particularly amenable to the bed and the book… At the same time Provincetown is a lascivious carnival during the summer months, and it would be a shame to miss its gaudier pleasures. At night the town is full of the particular spirit of recklessness that obtains in places full of people fully prepared – eager – to do things they would not consider doing at home.”

Cunningham offers both an historical narrative that is never dry, as well as a guided tour through town in his unique tantalizing style. This is not the kind of tour you would get between the pages of a Fodors guidebook. He also provides brief glimpses of his own background, in particular how it relates to his falling in love with this destination in the first place. Some readers may know that Provincetown was once a mecca of sorts for writers and visual artists, primarily due to the 1899 establishment of the Cape Cod School of Arts. What drew Cunningham there was the receipt of a fellowship from Provincetown’s Fine Arts Work Center. It seems he began his love affair with the town then and still holds a great fondness for it. I can’t say I blame him.

“Provincetown is a mysterious place, and those of us who love it tend to do so with a peculiar, inscrutable intensity.”

Naturally, tourism plays a large role in the economy of Provincetown, and Cunningham depicts a lovely contrast between the tourist season and the quieter, lazier, winter season. It seems he takes pleasure in both in some measure or another. The town is primarily a LGBTQ community, though it has a fair share of both heterosexual residents and tourists. Cunningham’s vivid portraits of the various beaches and their marked delineations between sexual and gender identities was a delight to read, due inasmuch to his tongue in cheek humor as well as to the imagery of the dunes and the deep blue waters.

“Bare breasts are more the norm than the exception here, and for some of us it is a unique opportunity to understand that the female breast is among the more profoundly variable of human wonders.”

I’m not going to spoil any more of this little jewel. If you are a fan of Cunningham already or you need a great substitute armchair destination due to travel restrictions, then grab a copy of this, put your feet up or frolic in your own backyard for a short while. Just watch out for the prying eyes of your neighbors!

“Sex settles over the quiet streets like a blanket; it is sexy simply to walk or pedal around, with no intention of bodily engagement, just to watch and listen and to breathe salty nocturnal air so saturated with want.”

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

These happy footprints in the sand are mine, since I wisely accepted Michael Cunningham’s invitation to tour Provincetown and learn a thing or two along the beachy way. While I read Land's End with the eyes of an imaginary tourist, the author wrote the memoir not exactly as a travel guide but rather as a love letter to a place he adopted ages ago. As he takes you on a casual stroll across his East Coast village and around it, Cunningham introduces his community to you in an easy, competent manner: he's part of the crowd.

There are bits of history in there, architecture, ocean wildlife, you name it, it’s all woven very loosely and from one topic to the next there is still comfortable room for art celeb anecdotes and other curiosities. As a visitor, you will perhaps only ever see the summery smile of other vacationers if you end up in P-town one day, but in this memoir you are made privy to something on the more modest side of a gay mecca and an all-around popular sea destination. Every part of the book was written from the heart and spoke of real life, every single one.

I found it was an exercise in refinement on Michael Cunningham’s part that he would muse about the place across the seasons, the high and the low, and find so much to cherish during those long winter months when the tourists are away and it’s only the locals puttering about, only to share these delicate and evasive joys with you in his book.

Full disclosure: I grew up next to a very similar location on the Canadian East Coast – without the benefit of having a gay mecca anywhere nearby, can’t have it all – and found troves of memories and images to relate to in this slim and elegant book. As a means of escape during a dreary fall in the city, Land's End: A Walk in Provincetown worked its magic on me in a snap. This was a short trip to a beachfront town in the excellent company of a gifted conversationalist and a true breath of cool salty air.

[Pedro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part travel book, part memoir, with a few hints of History and also some homaging poems in between (by Denis Johnson, for example) this was as a gorgeous read as one would expect from Mr Cunningham.

Now, I’ll have to be honest and say that I believe I’ve never heard of Provincetown before and had absolutely no idea about its reputation as a favourite gay (and lesbian) destination. Having read nearly all of Mr Cunningham’s catalogue I should’ve guessed, but somehow I didn’t.
I was glad to realise I still keep some naivety in me though because this made for a far more surprising read.

Provincetown really seems like a fun holiday destination in summer, but I’ll have to admit that I would prefer to spend a few days there in winter (when the place seems to look more like a ghost town) and enjoy the stunning scenery in solitude and silence.

I obviously totally recommend this “walk” with Mr Cunningham around Provincetown; to get to know and feel this place as a story and also as the main character.

In the end, as I turned the last page, I realised (and you’ll probably agree) that we all have a “Provincetown” in our lives; that special place where you feel more like yourself than anywhere else on Earth.

If I die tomorrow, Provincetown is where I’d want my ashes scattered. Who knows why we fall in love, with places or people, with objects and ideas. Thirty centuries of literature haven’t begun to solve the mystery; nor have they in any way slaked our interest in it.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best-written Wikipedia entry ever?

By turns delightful and dull, hilarious and haunting, this collection of history, poetry, geography, and personal anecdotes makes up a lyrical love letter to the "eccentrics' sanctuary" otherwise known as Provincetown, Massachusetts.

Much like the town itself, it's random, unorthodox, and full of surprises around every corner. It's also not going to be for everybody. Unless you have a personal interest in or connection to the town, or consider yourself a Cunningham completist, this will risk losing your interest pretty quickly.

I had the literary good luck of reading this in the days leading up to my very first visit to Provincetown earlier today. Despite being twenty years out of date, it provided an educational and enticing introduction and travel guide to a town I knew shockingly little about before picking this up.

Enough to help me realize that visiting in the chilly off-season, with my parents and sister at my side, probably wasn't the IDEAL way for me to experience "P-Town.” But it still greatly enhanced my enjoyment of this first (and hopefully not last) visit nevertheless. Makes me feel all warm and giddy inside, just knowing that an American city with rainbow-colored crosswalks even exists.

I suppose it's a testament to Cunningham's almost proselytizing passion for this special town that he sometimes gets tangled up in tedious minutiae, like an excited child trying to tell a story that spirals off into ever-multiplying, less interesting tangents. His prose also colors a bit purple at times for my tastes, and his zeal for classical allusions borders on alienating (for me at least).

But scattered throughout this slight volume's brief chapters are plenty of wise and beautifully written reflections on art, identity, and the joy of finding a place one can gladly call home:

It is the only town I know of where those who live unconventionally seem to outnumber those who live within the prescribed boundaries of home and licensed marriage, respectable job and biological children. It is where people who were the outcasts and untouchables in other towns can become prominent members of society.

Now THAT sounds like my kind of town!

[Lorna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Land's End: A Walk in Provincetown was a delightful book by Michael Cunningham discussing his long love affair with Provincetown at Land's End on the sandy tip at the end of Cape Cod, dating back more than twenty years when he first spent time there as part of a writing fellowship. Not only did he quickly fall in love with the haunting seascape and quaint village, but for the first time, he actually felt like he had found "home," the place where he belonged. Cunningham talks not only about the history of the this quaint area but also the influence of art and literature over the centuries. Exploring Michael Cunningham's Provincetown was a lovely way to spend an afternoon.

"There is a short interval on clear summer evenings in Provincetown, after the sun has set, when the sky is deep blue but the hulls of boats in the harbor retain a last vestige of light that is visible nowhere else. They become briefly phosphorescent in a dim blue world."

"If I die tomorrow, Provincetown is where I'd want my ashes scattered. Who knows why we fall in love, with places or people, with objects or ideas? Thirty centuries of literature haven't begun to solve the mystery; nor have they in any way slaked our interest in it."

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most travel books are about going somewhere new and recording one’s experiences; this one is about staying home in a beloved place and good-naturedly welcoming visitors in for a tour. Cunningham, known for novels like The Hours, wrote this homage to Provincetown, Massachusetts 15 years ago as part of the Crown Journeys series. He recounts the wider history of the town as well as his personal history with it, and takes readers through the beach areas and the downtown, pointing out the best places to go for a drink or do some shopping.

Of course, today Provincetown is best known as a haven for homosexuals and artists: “an eccentrics’ sanctuary,” as Cunningham describes it; “the only small town I know of where those who live unconventionally seem to outnumber those who live within the prescribed boundaries of home and licensed marriage, respectable job and biological children. It is where people who were the outcasts and untouchables in other towns can become prominent members of society.”

I can hardly think of another book that so succinctly and lovingly sums up a place, and were I familiar with Provincetown myself I daresay I would have given this 5 stars. It’s somewhere I’ve never been and may indeed never go, but this book is better than any tourist guide because it makes you feel like you belong and would recognize any landmark or establishment you might pass.

Other favorite lines:

“Sex settles over the quiet streets like a blanket; it is sexy simply to walk or pedal around, with no intention of bodily engagement, just to watch and listen and to breathe salty nocturnal air so saturated with want.”

“The light in Provincetown rivals that of Paris or Venice. Being in Provincetown is like standing on a raft moored fifty miles out to sea. Its light is aquatic; it falls not only down from the sky but up again from the water, so that when you stand there, you do so as if between two immense platters of mirror. Provincetown’s shadows are deeper and more complex than the shadows in most other places; its edges are sharper and its colors clearer.”

“Provincetown today is something like an elderly bohemian who once knew people of great influence, who still dresses eccentrically, still lives in defiant poverty, still paints or sculpts with heroic optimism, and flirts only on bad days with bitterness about having been gifted and dedicated and having been left behind.”

Note: As of 2002, Cunningham only knew of one previous book about Provincetown: Mary Heaton Vorse’s Time and the Town (1942); in his acknowledgments he also mentions Leona Rust Egan’s Provincetown as a Stage. Fifteen years on, Paul Lisicky is currently writing a book about Provincetown.

[My secondhand copy came from a thrift store in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, but I think it was originally purchased in Provincetown itself: inside was a Provincetown Bookshop bookmark with an owl on it, as well as a receipt from Puzzle Me This, Provincetown.]

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5, review to come

[Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect pack-away book! It's a journey; it's a year spent in a town that is a famous yet infamous little town. I feel like I myself could be a resident there, but I have never been there. I don't know if I ever WILL be there. But this book is such a deeply honest experience. Entertaining, heartfelt, bittersweet, amusing . . . everything! A New England climate set upon sandy wilderness. Reading this book made me feel like I've just been on a vacation. Not a restful type of vacation. One of those eye-opening types of vacations that require constant movement and observation. It's an experience that makes me lifelong grateful that I was allowed to have the experience, and very happy to be home afterwards. Simple pleasures can be had everywhere.

[Maison Koala · Rating 3 out of 5]

Provincetown, Massachuttes, sta a Cunningham come Marina di Grosseto e Buttigliera d’Asti stanno a me:

posti dell’anima al di là e a prescindere dalle fascinazioni naturali, legami affettivi impossibili da sciogliere e tanto e ricco materiale per storie imperdibili.

Per Cunningham soltanto, però. Che la fulgida epopea famigliare ai bordi della Cappella di San Rocco vista oratorio e campo da calcetto deve ancora nascere :D

Giudizio tecnico finale: evocativo.

[Kyle Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely book. But it was also about my favorite place I’ve been, so hard to fault it.

[Rick B Buttafogo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book years ago when I met Michael Cunningham in Provincetown. 21 yrs later I decided to read again this week. It puts me right back in Provincetown. In the summer. Streets crowded with all sorts of people starting my yearly week vacation that I have been doing for 25+ years. With the exception of the “covid years” I have never missed going. This book hits each topic right on the head with the perfect description. Cunningham onky knows this having spent so much time there. This charming book about Provincetown is exactly what this little Portuguese New England town is all about.

[diario_de_um_leitor_pjv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leitura realizada num voo de oito horas a caminho do Estados Unidos onde irei finalmente visitar Provincetown.
Michael Cunninghham escreve um informado e sentido texto onde partilha com os seus leitores a paixão que tem por esta pequena cidade, estância balnear.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cape Cod is on the North West fringe of America, and Provincetown is on the very edge of Cape Cod. This isolation means it is a place which has attracted those on the periphery of American society too; artists and writers have made their homes here, and hosts a large gay and lesbian community too.

The walk takes us around the town, down the two main streets, across the marshes and dunes, for a brief dip in the bay and then onto the beaches. With him we visit some of the bars and clubs, drops into some of the local stores and stops by when passing the famous residents homes. It has a long history too, as it was the first place the Mayflower landed, before departing to Plymouth across the bay.

It is formed by its location too. That part of the Atlantic is battered by winter storms, hence why most people visit in the summer, and the elements keep the town honest.. But in the transitory seasons there is something about the light there that has a unique quality. Even the grey days can feel special according to Cunningham, as these are some of the most dynamic and changeable.

Cunningham’s writing is vivid but has a haunting brevity. This is a place that he feels deeply at home at, and the place where he met his current partner, Kenny. Even though he spends time in New York too, he has now bought a place, and is in the process of renovating it.

Thought this was worth reading overall; I liked the way each chapter was separated with a poem too.

Found this image of Provincetown on a calm day

[Alyson Larrabee · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have any interest in or fondness for this iconic, eccentric and fascinating place, read this brilliant ode to Provincetown. The writing, like all of Michael Cunningham’s writing is ingeniously beautiful. His reminiscences, reflections and insights dazzle. Some of the information is dated because it was published in 2002.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The pilgrims, Cunningham reminds us, first landed in Provincetown, not Plymouth. And so continues a long story of unconventional and idiosyncratic folks finding refuge, inspiration, love, escape, and friendship in this remote summer mecca where the refined light attracted painters and artists, who attracted writers and layabouts, who mixed with once-whale, then cod fishermen, all in a small and deeply gay-friendly town where a 7' Cher-on-rollerblades is as likely to be seen flyering for the latest show as in line at the grocery store. For anyone who's visited, Land's End reads as a memoir from folks who live there year around, a peek into the winter seasons, and a memento of favorite hikes, beaches, and bars. For anyone who hasn't, Cunningham does not flinch in addressing the stories of the AIDS crisis and it's terrible impact on the town, of sand dunes that serve duty as ash cemeteries, of the bars, back alleys, and beach bluffs where naked men have sex, or down the way, nudist lesbians haul in coolers, umbrellas, and kids, or down the way, families setup campers and grill. This is traveling writing, memoir, and a celebration of a town at the end of the road. Recommended.

[Pudds Downing · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book could have been wonderful. I love the poetry, the beauty of Michael Cunningham's writing. But the old nursery rhyme line, paraphrased, could apply here. "When he is good he is very, very good but when he is bad he is horrid." WhenI bought this book I really was not looking for a detailed description of the life of a promiscuous homosexual in Provincetown. Yuck, yuck and more yuck. Frankly, I don't care if you're gay, straight, bi or alien. I don't want to read about where, when, how or with whom you have sex. And I sure don't want to watch you doing it on the beach. So the book ended up being very disappointing, in general.

[Laurel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was more about Michael Cunningham than it was about Provincetown.

[March · Rating 5 out of 5]

Michael Cunningham could be writing about the 1983 phone book of Gorno Oryahovo, and still make it the most lyrical and evocative piece you’ll read all year. I have never visited Provincetown, the closest to it I’ve ever been is Mackinac Island, all the way up on the top of Michigan. I don’t have any special memories attached to this place. It’s also not necessarily an obviously exciting or particularly exotic place. Yet I was feeing so good throughout this journey that Cunningham took me on, I was so glad to have him as my guide through this quirky little place. This book gave me a very cozy feeling while I was reading 2-3 pages every evening during October and November. It brought a sense of serenity and peace, calmed me down, and made me admire Cunningham for his mastery with words.

[Leslie's Bookcase · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best descriptions of “place” I have ever read. Whether you plan to go to Provincetown or never will this book will take you there not as a guidebook but more as an experience of the real feelings and emotions, and people, of the place. I loved this book. It is dated, 2002, but the spirit I’m sure remains if some of the specific places described do not.

[Laemy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Симпатично написанный известным автором как-бы туристический гид по небольшому, но заметному городку рядом с Бостоном. Исторические анекдоты, истории местных жителей, известные места и события. Такая небольшая история в себе, которая обычно работает фоном в каком-нибудь хорошем романе про жизнь, а тут оставлена сама по себе. Как будто подробное описание городка в Симсах с таким взглядом сверху и внутрь. Мило, но не обязательно. Спокойно начитано переводчиком, самое оно позасыпать в дороге.

[Cory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exactly the kind of travelogue I crave—lived in without feeling exclusive, poetic but direct and specific, completely resplendent in its sense of place. I was enthralled by this for two days, would reread it tomorrow.

[Isabella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a perfect read while in Provincetown. I remember reading The Hours back in college and being amazed by the beauty of Michael Cunningham’s writing, so it was such a pleasant surprise to learn he lives in Provincetown and wrote this short book about it. And an even better surprise- I bought the book here in P-town at East End Books, and after opening it realized it was signed!

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read and loved this book in the heady days of my summer here, when I dreamed of becoming a writer myself. 20+ years later, it stands up. The writing is so, so gorgeous; it truly captures Provincetown’s heart.

[D · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the A-House to whales, Pulitzer Prize winner, Michael Cunningham captures all that is special about Provincetown, Massachusetts.

[Mark Fallon · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a joy to read a book about a place you love by a gifted author who loves that place too.

[Jonathan Li · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading / finishing it while in ptown felt like an out of body experience. The romantic writing combined with physically walking down commercial street made everything about ptown another type of familiar.

[Michael Joe Armijo · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is clearly the pressure of a renowned author being pressured to come out with another book quickly. It's like reading excerpts from his personal journal that have been thrown together. It starts out adjectively (and continues that way) with one getting to know the feeling of Provincetown. I have never been there and would like to go one day, but if I wanted a GUIDEBOOK of P-Town it would be more suitable. Then, as you read on you get glimpses of how the author met his boyfriend in P-Town and his other flings (beforehand). Sure...you get a little history salt n' peppered in as well--but who gives a crock about the fish that you can find in the Cape Cod shores. There's a rush to sentimentality with a close friend & former lover who died of AIDS. You get a mini-bio of Eugene O'neill and his P-Town exposure along with other writers and artists. There was a line or two about how the author & his boyfriend saw a lithe, gorgeous gay Uncle on the beach that they BOTH wanted &/or wanted 'to be' that was supposed to shock me--but it didn't. I think this is a great book for a "single" gay guy or lesbian who's planning to visit Provincetown. I just think this is SUCH A DISAPPOINTMENT for a follow-up to one of my A+ FIVE STAR ratings of his Pulitzer Prize winning, THE HOURS. This should win the "SPRITZER LET DOWN" PRIZE.

[Tessa Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will inspire anyone to take a trip to Provincetown, Massachussetts. Cunningham (also author of The Hours) takes readers by the hand and leads them on a magical tour of this quaint little beach town at the tip of Cape Cod. Provincetown has a rich history and has become a popular summer vacation destination worldwide, known for its arts, beaches, shopping and gourmet restaurants. It has a large gay community and hosts a wide array of people: tourists, writers, families, gay couples hand-in-hand, drag queens and artists. Cunningham spends the off season here to enjoy a solitary winter to focus on his writing. In Provincetown everyone is welcome and accepted. I have spent two summers in Provincetown and it is truly a magical place. The library there is amazing and I spent some time volunteering for their booksale.

[Michael Sundblad · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have ever been to Provincetown, you need to read this book. If you have ever wanted to visit, this is required reading as well. This ranks with Jack Finney's “Time and Again” as one of the most romantic strolls through any American landscape. While Finney’s novel uses time travel as a device to tell a love story between and man and a woman—and a city, Cunningham drips glimpses of the past into the present to explain his love for a quirky, small town that has no business existing, jutting into the ocean as it does. If you want to fall in love with P-Town all over again, or wonder why anyone loves this place at all, you need to read this book.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great travelogue - sociological study hybrid. Quick read but it will literally make you rent a car and drive to the tip of Cape Cod within two weeks.
(Plus, odds are great that you'll see Michael somewhere on Commercial or at Mussel Beach.)