my year of essayists

june: notes on molly wizenberg

July 9, 2009

I went and had a little summer fling. I suppose I can blame it on those long afternoons by the lake and the absence of responsibility. And surely the hammock had something to do with it. I was supposed to spend my afternoons with E.B. White. I promised you I would–or at least I’d promised […]

6 comments Read the full post →

may: notes on anne lamott

June 3, 2009

Post #5 in my year-long project. random notes: I have to watch myself when I read Anne Lamott. I only have to read a little, and suddenly I’m trying to write like her. Trying to be funny. Littering my lines with qualifiers: the merest bit jealous, or a tad overzealous. Once the tidepool metaphors start showing up […]

9 comments Read the full post →

april: notes on joan didion

May 5, 2009

The next installment in my little Year of Excellent Essayists project. random notes: I sure loved reading Joan Didion. I read most of The White Album when we were in Los Angeles. It was a treat to read Didion’s take on The Getty before we went there; to read about the Santa Monica Freeway as […]

6 comments Read the full post →

march: notes on sue hubbell

April 6, 2009

The latest installment in My Year of Excellent Essayists project. random notes: You may or may not have heard of Sue Hubbell. I chose her because she wrote a wonderful book called A Book of Bees…and How to Keep Them, which I read a couple of years ago when I became curious about beekeeping. Since […]

5 comments Read the full post →

february: notes on montaigne

March 7, 2009

The next installment in My Year of Excellent Essayists. Are you up for this? Notes on a sixteenth-century essayist? Before you click away, note that I’ve added a few marginally related photos to hold your interest. Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) is widely regarded as the father of the essay. The word essay originated in the […]

5 comments Read the full post →

january: notes on annie dillard

February 4, 2009

So I’ve finished the first month in My Year of Excellent Essayists, and what a glorious month it’s been! I’ve enjoyed reading Annie Dillard so much that I’m reluctant to let her go, and move on to the next essayist in the queue.  If you’re interested in essays, a fantastic resource is The Art of […]

12 comments Read the full post →

my year of excellent essayists

January 15, 2009

So I’m beginning this blog project with a bit of trepidation, knowing it may well bore the hand-knit socks off many of you. But I also realize that if the topic bores you, you can quite easily hit your back-button and move along to the next blog in your subscription. And I promise that my […]

6 comments Read the full post →

Next Entries →