Into Woods is an exuberant, profound, and often wonderfully funny account of ten years in the life of its award-winning author, Bill Roorbach. A paean to nature, to love, to family, and to place, Into Woods provides a sequel to Roorbach's first book, the critically acclaimed and popular Summers with Juliet, which traced Roorbach's courtship of Juliet Karelsen, ending with their wedding on the water. Into Woods begins with their honeymoon on a wine farm in the Loire Valley of France and closes with the birth of their new daughter and return to their beloved Maine. Thoroughly original, the essays of Into Woods blend journalism, memoir, personal narrative, nature writing, cultural criticism, and rare insight into a narrative of place, a meditation on being and belonging, love and death, wonder and foreboding. The title essay, Into Woods, is a portrait of the writer as a young man; it is also a hymn to work and men. This evocative essay sets the theme for the rest of the collection. Spirits, Shitdiggers, Mudflats, and the Worm Men of Maine, Duck Day Afternoon, Birthday, and Sky Pond all pay homage to Bill's life in Maine. You Have Given This Boy Life, perhaps the most hau
It's exciting to find so many of Bill Roorbach's essays collected finally into one volume. I have loved reading his work in various journals and magazines; reading them again here, along with essays I'd never read, is such a satisfying experience.I found myself laughing out loud on the subway reading the first essay, "Honeymoon," as Roorbach described some of the challenges of comunicating in France. "Into Woods," the title essay, is one of my favorites. It was an essay I made my whole family read.What I admire most about Roorbach's work is how much he can cover in an essay. He will start out in one place and then end up somewhere completely unexpected. His is such an amiable presence... so funny, so smart. Hey, he had me reading about fishing and liking it :) I look forward to any journey he takes us on.
ThriftBooks sells millions of used books at the lowest everyday prices. We personally assess every book's quality and offer rare, out-of-print treasures. We deliver the joy of reading in recyclable packaging with free standard shipping on US orders over $15. ThriftBooks.com. Read more. Spend less.