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In this lively exploration of America’s intellectual heritage, acclaimed poet, novelist, and critic Jay Parini celebrates the life and times of thirteen books that helped shape the American psyche.
Moving nimbly between the great watersheds in American letters—including Walden, Huckleberry Finn, The Souls of Black Folk, and On the Road—Parini demonstrates how these books entered American life and altered how we think and act in the world. An immensely readable and vibrant work of cultural history, Promised Land exposes the rich literary foundation of our culture, and is sure to appeal to all book lovers and students of the American character alike.
In this lively exploration of America’s intellectual heritage, acclaimed poet, novelist, and critic Jay Parini celebrates the life and times of thirteen books that helped shape the American psyche.
Moving nimbly between the great watersheds in American letters—including Walden, Huckleberry Finn, The Souls of Black Folk, and On the Road—Parini demonstrates how these books entered American life and altered how we think and act in the world. An immensely readable and vibrant work of cultural history, Promised Land exposes the rich literary foundation of our culture, and is sure to appeal to all book lovers and students of the American character alike.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Excerpts-
Chapter One
ONE Of Plymouth Plantation
I. Every nation has a founding myth, or myths: stories that talk of bright but challenging beginnings, portraying the drama of self-definition and establishment. The United States, with its complex origins and mixed identities, has many such myths, but among them is a primary text in the story of American colonial life: William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation, a journal written between 1620 and 1647. It tells the story of the original Pilgrims, who came to Plymouth in Massachusetts from northern England, via the Netherlands, on the Mayflower in 1620. The historical importance of this journal cannot be exaggerated. Apart from being a vivid account of what happened, it has immense credibility, having been written by a man who was an active agent (as governor) in the story itself. The adventures and misadventures of the Pilgrims form the core of Bradford's journal, which recounts a thoroughly absorbing story about a people who managed against the odds to pull together for the sake of their community, to get control over their own rebels and malcontents, and to make peace among themselves and with the native population, the Wampanoag, with whom (after a difficult year of illness and privation, which reduced their numbers almost by half) they shared what has become known as the first Thanksgiving: a celebration of mutual interests. Although the exact nature of this event, a harvest festival that occurred in the fall of 1621, has relatively little in common with the mythic tale most Americans hear about in elementary school, it has become a legend, one of those primal stories that have shaped our sense of who we are.
II. America was sorely in need of some mythic tale about itself when, in 1855, the manuscript of Bradford's journal was discovered in the library of Fulham Palace, on the Thames, a summer retreat for London bishops. A traveler called John Wingate Thornton from Boston found it by chance. He was a man described by one acquaintance as "an accomplished antiquary and a delightful gentleman." He recognized passages by Bradford quoted in another book, which contained a note about the full manuscript and its whereabouts. His discovery must be considered one of the great literary finds.
Although missing for such a long time, the journal was not unknown. Passages from Bradford had been widely circulated for two centuries, with extracts in the records at Plymouth. Early historians, such as Thomas Prince and William Hubbard, apparently had the manuscript in hand when they wrote their classic accounts of the Plymouth Colony. But the complete work—a handwritten journal—had disappeared, having been carried to England at some point, where it lay in dusty obscurity until Thornton unearthed it. He laboriously copied the work in full, then published it in the United States in 1856, attracting huge attention in the disunited states of that era, when the Civil War loomed offstage, but only just. Anyone could see that serious conflict lay ahead, though a savage and relentless war could hardly be imagined. It would take the outright slaughter of Antietam and Gettysburg for that reality to dawn in full.
In the 1850s, there was also a good deal of anxiety in the air about westward expansion. Lewis and Clark made their journey to the Pacific coast and back to St. Louis at the beginning of the century, and excitement over the West grew as Americans learned more about the abundant regions that lay on the other side of the Mississippi. The region beckoned to young men and women, who dreamed of wealth and adventure. Parents, as ever, worried about losing touch with their children—this was well before...
About the Author-
Jay Parini, a poet and novelist, teaches at Middlebury College in Vermont. His novels include The Apprentice Lover, Benjamin’s Crossing,andThe Last Station (now a major motion picture). His fifth volume of poetry was The Art of Subtraction: New and Selected Poems (2005). He has written biographies of John Steinbeck, Robert Frost, and William Faulkner, in addition to The Art of Teaching (2005)andWhy Poetry Matters (2008). His reviews and essays appear frequently in major periodicals, including The Chronicle of Higher Education and The Guardian. He lives in Vermont.
Reviews-
Starred review from September 1, 2008 Poet, novelist and literary critic Parini (The Last Station ) examines the books he believes represent the soul of the American republic. Some of these books are masterpieces, others icons of a moment in American history. Throughout, Parini makes his case while wearing his learning lightly. All of these works, from William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation to Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique , had a profound impact on America's complex identity. The evolving American dynamic is noted in the way the subjects cluster: the American experiment (The Federalist Papers ); exploration of a continent (The Journals of Lewis and Clark ); a new connection with nature and self (Walden ); issues of race and urban ethnicity (Uncle Tom's Cabin and The Souls of Black Folk , among others); business and its opposite, the counterculture (How to Win Friends and Influence People and On the Road ). A terrific chapter explores Dr. Spock's The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care (“Spock said no to no”). A listing of 100 additional books with seismic impact rounds out this engaging discussion, which ought to be on the syllabus of American studies courses.
October 1, 2008 Poet, novelist, critic, and biographer Parini ("Benjamin's Crossing"; "Why Poetry Matters") here offers a chronologically organized array of meaty, semischolarly, but not stuffy essays about 13 American books that, in his mind, have done the most to change America, from "Of Plymouth Plantation" to "Uncle Tom's Cabin" to "The Feminine Mystique". Every reader of American literature will doubtless object to one or more of Parini's omissions (e.g., "The Great Gatsby"; "An American Tragedy"; "The Scarlet Letter"), to say nothing of his exclusion of plays and poemsthe first because he doesn't consider them books, the second because, he writes, aside from Walt Whitman, Robert Frost, and Sylvia Plath, they "rarely have a discernible effect on the public." Parini does include an appendix titled "One Hundred More Books That Changed America." The essays about the 13 central books are roughly 25 pages each and contain four parts: Parini discusses briefly the book's importance to American culture, describes the writer, renders the book in detail, and, finally, explains its impact. Parini writes for a general audience and shows a warming enthusiasm for his subjects. Recommended for all public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ" 6/1/08.]Charles C. Nash, formerly with Cottey Coll., Nevada, MO
Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Starred review from November 15, 2008 If books are the source of a nations mythology and intellectual and emotional contours, which books have changed America in important ways? Poet, novelist, and biographer Parini came up with 13 titles (one for each of the original colonies) that have clearly altered American consciousness. Not necessarily the greatest books, but rather those with the greatest impact, Parinis picks add up to a stimulating mix of the obvious and the unexpected. His 13 exemplary essays are 13 stepping stones across the torrent of ideas and dreams that have propelled American history, and it is a rare pleasure to sharpen ones mind against each passionate supporting argument. Standouts include Parinis vigorous engagement with The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, his electrifying appreciation for the sharply relevant wisdom in Thoreaus Walden, and his robust and resonant assessment of Huckleberry Finn, in which Twain challenges us . . . to rethink what freedom means at every turn in the river. Add to that revelatory profiles of W. E. B. DuBois; Mary Antin, whose immigrant autobiography gives this book its title; Benjamin Spock; Dale Carnegie; and Betty Friedan. Parini concludes with an annotated list of100 more pivotal works, creating a mind-expanding book of books guaranteed to provoke discussion and fuel reading groups.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)
The Christian Science Monitor
"Learned and gracefully composed. . . . Together, [these books] chart the course of four centuries' worth of American ambitions, desires, and fears."
San Francisco Chronicle
"Incisive. . . . Erudite. . . . A welcome beacon."
The Dallas Morning News
"The work of a mature critic at the height of his powers. Parini conveys a vivid sense of who we have been, who we are and whom we might want to become as a nation."
Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air
"Surprising. . . . Thoughtful. . . . Convincing. . . . Readers will benefit from dipping into Parini's book and reacquainting themselves with the nation's bedrock myths and stories."
The Seattle Times
"Eclectic. . . . Illuminating. . . . [Parini] tells us we're more literary than we might think, that in fact our culture is in part the product of literature that has become so embedded as to be almost invisible."
Francine Prose
"Anyone who has ever wondered if books can make a difference will be fascinated and encouraged by Promised Land, Jay Parini's incisive reading of thirteen books that changed our country forever and helped create the nation in which we live today."
The Philadelphia Inquirer
"Parini's book seeks to restore our faith in the American character. . . . He reminds us that we too are part of a long legacy of radical thinkers and doers. We are of a lineage of everyday revolutionaries who constantly challenge the status quo, and are thus called to continue our quest to animate our ideas into a national reality."
Chicago Sun-Times
"Delightful. . . . Well-rounded. . . . Parini has a special gift to somehow locate common strands in the disparate works that make this collection."
The San Diego Union-Tribune
"This is the kind of book that is fun to ponder, for what it says about us, as Americans, and the sort of question it implicitly provokes each of us to ask: What books helped to shape our own lives and our own historical moment?"
Chicago Tribune
"Very smart."
The Wall Street Journal
"Like watching a time-lapse film of cultural evolution--with the perennial motifs of American life changing colors and sprouting the odd appendage over the course of two centuries."
The Times-Picayune (New Orleans)
"Parini distills books to their very essence . . . and he expands the way their ideas have rippled outward in time. . . . Promised Land is a provocative, perfect topic for reading groups, as well as a guide to additional reading."
The Chronicle of Higher Education
"Parini is a congenial companion through some touchstone books. . . . Each chapter walks the reader through the book in question and offers a patient, informed discussion of its author, historical context, and repercussions. . . . A tour through Parini's 13 books is thus an examination of the preoccupations and myths that constitute American identity."
Los Angeles Times
"An effective, economical way to survey American history and culture. . . . Would make an excellent starting point for a college course."
Guelph Mercury (Ontario)
"Parini is a literary Renaissance man. . . . What makes his writing so engaging is the learning, critical acumen and insight he brings to bear on each book."
Booklist
"Stimulating. . . . Robust and resonant. . . . A mind-expanding book of books guaranteed to provoke discussion and fuel reading groups."
The Lexington He
"Parini is known for tackling big subjects. . . . Readable, insightful, and provocative, Promised Land is a good companion to our cultural history, beckoning us to read or reread America's watershed texts . . . through our current political, cultural and environmental lenses. Most of all, it renews our awareness of the power and value of words. . . . Engaging and refreshing."
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