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American Beat
A compendium of Greene's witty and poignant essays from "Esquire," his syndicated "Chicago Tribune" columns, and his pieces from ABC's "Nightline" explores diverse facets of life in the United States
336 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1984
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About the author
Bob Greene
41 books52 followersRobert Bernard Greene, Jr., who writes as Bob Greene, is a journalist.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 25, 2023
I bought my copy of American Beat, my first Bob Greene book, from a Waldenbooks in Jonesboro, Ark., in 1984. I was a young newspaper reporter wanting to learn how to write. Why not turn to the master? Now, nearly 40 years later, I own most of his books, including the hard-to-find Billion Dollar Baby, and I find each of them still amazing even after reading them scores of times.
This time, I had a freelance assignment for a magazine to write about a homeless woman staying in an Amtrak depot in Arkansas. I turned to American Beat to prime the muse by reading only a few stories. But as I got into it, each of Bob's stories pulled me further in and even now I am still stunned at the beauty, the emotions, the craft of his writing.
There are scores of columns that have stayed with me.
There's the woman who works a night shift on the phone approving credit card purchases for a chain of gasoline stations. Bob writes that as night falls, the calls turn from requesting approval for charges to obscene calls from lonely workers out there in the country.
There's an ode to the ballet of planes that come and go from O'Hare airport in Chicago. Bob stays in a hotel room by the airport and watches the endless flights.
There's the profile of Frank Sinatra Jr., and how he tries to live his own musical career rather than ride the glamor of his father's.
There's the tale of the son of a cook who works in a seedy bar who has the look of a hard-timer despite being about 12 years old.
There are so many stories that, on one hand seem mundane, yet in Bob's hands become true looks at the real world. It's an amazing voyage into how he sees things.
Now, 40 years later, I still go to his books to learn how to write. They are all that good.
This time, I had a freelance assignment for a magazine to write about a homeless woman staying in an Amtrak depot in Arkansas. I turned to American Beat to prime the muse by reading only a few stories. But as I got into it, each of Bob's stories pulled me further in and even now I am still stunned at the beauty, the emotions, the craft of his writing.
There are scores of columns that have stayed with me.
There's the woman who works a night shift on the phone approving credit card purchases for a chain of gasoline stations. Bob writes that as night falls, the calls turn from requesting approval for charges to obscene calls from lonely workers out there in the country.
There's an ode to the ballet of planes that come and go from O'Hare airport in Chicago. Bob stays in a hotel room by the airport and watches the endless flights.
There's the profile of Frank Sinatra Jr., and how he tries to live his own musical career rather than ride the glamor of his father's.
There's the tale of the son of a cook who works in a seedy bar who has the look of a hard-timer despite being about 12 years old.
There are so many stories that, on one hand seem mundane, yet in Bob's hands become true looks at the real world. It's an amazing voyage into how he sees things.
Now, 40 years later, I still go to his books to learn how to write. They are all that good.
November 29, 2017
Bob Greene writes with the confidence of a sad man.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews