The Inhabitants

by Wright Morris

The 52 full-page photographs and accompanying text of this volume make up one of the most unusual,effective and graphic treatments of the American scene and folkways ever published. "The Inhabitants" achieves a startling and remarkable fusion of photographs and words. The pictures in this volume are arresting and brilliant examples of the photographic art. The text - impressionistic and startling vignettes of American life and Americans - is vivid, down-to-earth, nostalgic and amusing.

Genres: Art, Photography

104 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1946

About the author

Wright Marion Morris was an American novelist, photographer, and essayist. He is known for his portrayals of the people and artifacts of the Great Plains in words and pictures, as well as for experimenting with narrative forms.
Morris won the National Book Award for The Field of Vision in 1956. His final novel, Plains Song won the American Book Award in 1981.

Reviews

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky to find a musty copy of this at a book sale for cheap, and I love my paperback of The Home Place so much its falling apart, I couldn't resist.

From time to time I pick it off the shelf and just open to a page with an amazing picture and read a passage. This man had such an incredible talent for expressing the unspoken feelings and tendencies of not only his generation but the voices that would tread these lands for years to come. So very personal and universal at the same time, so much wisdom and coherent sprit in these words and images. It is absolutely breathtaking to think that someone had these thoughts, you thank goodness that he had the sense to write them down. Paired with the images he is such an American treasure and should be so much more celebrated than his less modest peers.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book consists of photographs on the right-hand page, short stories opposite and a line of text across the top of each left-hand page which links all of the stories and photographs together. Reading this book is unlike any other reading experience I have had. The photographs are like wisps of memory, ghostly remains after all the people have gone. The words echo the human activity that went before in a wonderful recreation of verbal wit, wisdom, hopes, sorrows and dreams. It was the closest I've come to the experience of time-travelling! It is one of my most cherished books.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Penned in 1935, Morris's theme seems a bit esoteric if not dated.