by John McPhee
First published 2001
Princeton University began recognizing outstanding literary journalists in 1957, decades before creative nonfiction gained academic respectability. This collection gathers the favorite works of fifty-nine writers who held the prestigious Ferris and McGraw professorships. McPhee presents an eclectic mix that spans political analysis and personal narrative, humor and gravity. Readers encounter William Greider's sharp examination of democratic institutions, Leslie Cockburn's dangerous encounters with Colombian drug cartels, and David K. Shipler's reflections on racial dynamics. The anthology includes Haynes Johnson's account of Bay of Pigs veterans, Lucinda Frank's portrait of maternal determination against medical odds, and intimate biographical sketches like Charlotte Grimes's grandmother and Blair Clark's tribute to Robert Lowell. Additional pieces explore Harrison Salisbury on wartime Leningrad, Landon Jones on 1950s America, Christopher Wren on Soviet climbing expeditions, James Gleick on technological change, Gloria Emerson on Vietnam, Gina Kolata on mathematical breakthroughs, and Roger Mudd on media culture. The collection demonstrates how journalism evolved from a trade associated with disposable newsprint into a respected literary form.
Genres: history, anthologies, non-fiction, biography-memoir, journalism, academic
Vibes: eclectic, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: biographical-sketches, personal-narrative, political-analysis
Setting: Colombia, Leningrad, Princeton, Soviet Union, Vietnam
Period: 1950s, 1957, Bay of Pigs, Cold War, Vietnam War
376 pages · Paperback · Princeton University Press