Description
Explore the fascinating stories of 26 great American authors with images of the places that inspired them to write. It’s the perfect gift for book lovers. With over 140 photographs throughout, the images add mood and dimension to the writing – and they are often shockingly close to what the featured authors described in their own words. Lushly illustrated, and beautifully designed, the book is as much of a pleasure to look at as it is to read.
This is a volume for the literary enthusiast, the armchair traveler or the intrepid reader. It is a handsome and beautifully illustrated companion for those who seek to learn more about authors they have read and those who wish to discover new writers.
Ihatespam (via Amazon) –
What to Give the English Teacher (and/or Book Lover) in Your Life
Nothing short of magnificent, A Journey Through Literary America combines lucid, accessible writing with breathtaking images. For those with a deep wish to sense viscerally the link between some of America’s signature literary voices and the landscape that nurtured and inspired them, here is a book that illuminates as it entertains. Framed by Tamra Dempsey’s exquisite photographs, Thomas Hummel’s commentaries reflect both the insight of a scholar and the affection of one who has lived intensely with and for the written word. More than a good gloss on Irving, Emerson, Frost, Faulkner and so forth, A Journey Through Literary America is a kind of love letter, not simply to a collection of famed writers, but to those who read and revel in them as well.
Marc Schuster (via Amazon) –
The Perfect Gift for Book Lovers
This book is, objectively speaking, beautiful. Illustrated with page after glossy page of vibrant photographs, it explores the settings that inspired many of America’s most loved authors-from Washington Irving’s Castkills to Robinson Jeffers’ Big Sur and back to Toni Morrison’s Lorain, Ohio (and many, many other places in between). Yet the book is more than just a collection of pretty (or, more accurately, stunning) pictures. And it’s even more than just an examination of the specific places that had a profound effect on the literary output of certain authors. Rather, it’s a meditation on relationship between place and author, or, even more broadly, upon place and self, place and identity. This is no small feat, for it takes the authors we admire in the abstract and places them squarely in the real world. Seeing their homes, seeing their towns, seeing the streets they walked and the rolling vistas that inspired them makes the 26 authors examined in A Journey all the more real to me, all the more human.
Needless to say, the book is both a treat and treasure. Informative as it is beautiful, it will make a wonderful addition to any library. And, if you’re looking for the perfect gift for the book lover in your life, look no further than A Journey Through Literary America.
Midwest Book Review (via Amazon) –
Lives up to its title
Illustrated with full-color photography throughout, A Journey Through Literary America is a book for book lovers – surveying great American authors from Ralph Waldo Emerson to John Steinbeck, Sinclair Lewis, Ernest Hemingway, E. Annie Proulx, and many more. Each author has a brief biographical profile combined with breathtaking photography of the places they lived or that inspired them to create masterpieces. A wondrous tour ideal for enriching any literary collection – and sure to appeal to armchair travelers as well, A Journey Through Literary America lives up to its title and is highly recommended.
Tracy W. Ryan (via Amazon) –
If you want to totally get lost in a beautiful book….
This book is a true joy. It is not only beautiful. It is informative and moving. A glass of wine, this book in your lap, and a comfy couch is about as good as it gets….
Yes, the PERFECT GIFT, for any lover of literature.
Even better, give this gift to a person not well read…and a reader of great american literature will be born….
This book is a true gift to us from talented author Thomas Hummel and artist/photogragher Tamra Dempsey.
Julie Merilatt (via Amazon) –
Americana for Writers
Disclaimer: I did not read this book in its entirety, cover to cover. It is a coffee table book, so I treated it as such. I perused the beautiful photographs, read captions and quotes, and read more in-depth about authors that interested me. I would consider this lovely book more about Americana than literature. It explores the history of America’s most cherished authors and poets (with mini-bios). It does not inspire with literary images, but highlights the America that engaged writers. There are beautiful images of unspoiled landscapes, writer’s homes, and backwater towns. Some of the most dramatic pictures are those that evoke Frost’s poetry and the ones that portray the serenity of Walden Pond. But my favorites have to be Faulkner’s home and the displays of his literally writing on the walls that still exist.
This is a testament to the country that inspired its writers, whether in colonial New England, the vast prairie, or the west coast. I will definitely refer to this book in the future, as it would be a great companion for when I finally get around to reading many of the American classics referenced and to learn more about the scenery that the authors transferred onto their pages.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the photographer/co-author.
acuityathome.com –
When Ernest stayed at Horton Bay is was usually with his friends or at Pinehurst Inn.
Tamra Dempsey –
Hello Adam,
Thank you for sharing your insight.