A Certain Somewhere: Writers on the Places They Remember

by Robert Wilson (Editor)

A Certain Somewhere collects thirty essays originally published in Preservation magazine. Writers were asked to describe a place that is significant to them, to decipher what makes it mysterious and meaningful, and to examine the nature of attachment to a specific locale.

Gathered here are pieces by writers of all kinds---essayists, novelists, literary critics, poets---on disparate and enthralling places, from Madison Smartt Bell on Haiti to Thomas Mallon on the New York Public Library. These writers examine how they came to invest a part of themselves in the places they have inhabited, and how these places have consequently inhabited them. Most of all, the writers transport you to places that have enchanted them and will charm you as well.

This multifarious assembly offers readers a sophisticated armchair-travel experience, replete with insights into culture, politics, architecture, and history. Along the way, readers will also enjoy a glimpse at the inner lives of some of our finest writers.

272 pages, Hardcover

First published November 5, 2002

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Robert Wilson has been the editor of Phi Beta Kappa's magazine, The American Scholar, since 2004. Previously, he was the editor of Preservation, the magazine of the Natural Trust for Historic Preservation; literary editor of Civilization ; and the book review editor for USA Today.

Reviews

[Marti · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book took me so many great places, and I found something to love in each of the 30 essays.

I read this book of essays one a day.