Wickerby: An Urban Pastoral

Average customer rating:

fear from ignorance

This was a fascinating view of the city and the country.

For the contemplative traveller in all of us

Thoreau of the City

a loveletter to a city that's hard to love

Wickerby: An Urban Pastoral
Charles Siebert
Manufacturer: Three Rivers Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Nature Writing | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

In the Freud Archives (New York Review Books Classics)

Stop-Time: A Memoir

And when did you last see your father?: A Son's Memoir of Love and Loss

Colored People: A Memoir

The Boys of My Youth

ASIN: 0609802682
Release Date: 1999-03-16

Book Description

"Outside my window, the city lights are taking hold now, the breeze-brushed, gently pulsating grid. Why is a cemented aggregate of homes arranged in a tall, tight cluster any further from nature than one wood home within the woods? Because it is so thoroughly man-made? But we wouldn't call the towering carpenter ant's nest that I found one day in Wickerby's collapsing southeast corner 'ant-made.' We are no less natural than the next creature except that thinking makes it seem so. There is no such thing as nature. Wickerby would remind me of this. There is just the earth and us, the name-callers, standing upon it, calling those places without us, nature."

Against the backdrop of a tumbledown Brooklyn neighborhood, Charles Siebert, a native Brooklynite and longtime city-dweller, reflects upon the five months he has just spent at Wickerby, an old, collapsing log cabin in the woods of Canada. In vivid, lyrical prose, Siebert relates the events that prompted his sudden departure to Wickerby, and, while recounting the details of his isolated existence there, arrives at a series of stunningly original insights that explore and often explode the classic Romantic distinctions between city and country, man-made and natural. Along the way, the book's episodic, wide-ranging narrative takes us from Brooklyn's rooftops, where "pigeon mumblers" chase their flocks into the sky, to Albert, Wickerby's reclusive caretaker who pilfers the cabin's artifacts for his own yard sales.

In what emerges as a refreshing subversion of the typical log cabin book, this beautifully composed account of a journey away from the city ultimately allows us to view the city anew: not as the traditional antagonist of the natural world, but as a logical and inevitable outgrowth of that world, an entity as wondrous and awe-inspiring as anything found in nature.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

fear from ignorance.......1999-09-10

Contrary to other reviewers I found this book to be slightly overwritten. Siebert too often strung out so many dependent clauses that the original point of the sentence was lost and I had to go back and find the subject. I suppose that this is a metaphor for the central narrative point of the book, which seemed to be that life is worth reflecting upon once in a while. That's hard to argue with. I concede that one of the reasons I found Siebert's prose a bit hard to follow sometimes is that it was so thought-provoking.

I have lived in urban environments of one size or another (including Brooklyn) for most of my life. While I appreciate the pleasures of the country more than Mr. Siebert does, I don't have much interest in true wilderness and frankly don't understand people who do. Mr. Siebert's repeated assertion is that Nature is Nature where ever you find it and that we are an indivisible part of it, is a welcome rebuttal to all the tiresome whining from the likes of Barry Lopez et al. about how we are spiritually divorced from the Earth/earth etc. Mostly people are comfortable with what they deal with on a regular basis. In the case of Mr. Siebert, a Brooklyn native, that is the urban landscape, its inhabitants, pleasures and dangers. Although he makes a "good student" effort to get to know the names of the plants and animals around him at Wickerby, his knowledge of them is not bred in the bone and he therefore has no deeper connection to them. Since he represents a majority in modern American society, his honesty about his feelings on this subject are refreshing. I much prefer his candor to the silly Romantic musings of so many ex-urbanites and ex-suburbanites who whinge on about the aboriginal splendor of wilderness and pastoral settings and their inhabitants, pleasures and dangers.

Most rural residents are not as isolated and odd as Wickerby's "caretaker", Albert. No other local residents have more than a cameo appearance in the book, so this book should not be received as a rural versus urban community contrast.

This was a fascinating view of the city and the country........1998-11-08

I grew up, and still live, in Alaska. I've never been to New York - the biggest city I have experience with is Anchorage, 250,000 people. I have, however, a great deal of experience with the country and isolation. Mr. Seibert's comparison of the two was fascinating. I could empathize with his feelings while in the Canadian woods, while exploring New York City through his eyes. My only complaint is that I didn't get to find out what happened afterwards. I highly recommend this book!

For the contemplative traveller in all of us.......1998-07-08

What is most fascinating in this meditative, language enhancing book is Siebert's continual spiralling outward thoughts. He has an uncanny ability to make insightful associations from travel memories, letters, and chance meetings with the wildlife roommates of Wickerby. This urban pastoral is more than just a comparison between city living and country weekend getaways. We also get Siebert's reporting (via letters mostly) of Bex's extended stay in Africa, free associations on Siebert's own visits to the Amazon and a contemplation on the "fearless forests" of the city, the jungle and the countryside. Here is a spare volume - rich with observation, opinion and anecdote. One of the best books I've read in 1998.

Thoreau of the City.......1998-04-30

Siebert is a wonderful wordsmith. He gives you all the senses of the city. You can hear the gunshots. You can taste the grit. You can see the pigeons flying. You can smell the oil and decay. You can feel the concrete and metal. This book is very entertaining and enjoyable to read. If you want to feel the city, read this book.

a loveletter to a city that's hard to love.......1998-04-06

The best little book I've come across -- an antidote to the all too common nature, escape-from-the-city fairytales. True to its title, this urban pastoral takes Siebert and the reader far away from the Brooklyn neighborhood of the mumblers and Rudy the rhinoceros to a remote and dilapidated cabin and shows us through his adventures in the wild just how remarkable and appealing a place the big city can be. I read the last page and yearned to watch the rooftop exchanges, walk through Prospect Park, go to a street fair. Siebert is our city poet, Brooklyn is his muse, may he continue his loveletter to urban life.

Average customer rating:

Wickerby: An Urban Pastoral
Charles Siebert
Manufacturer: New York: Crown,
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000U2ETSC

Book Description

Packed with pubs, clubs, and shops, this guide covers arts and entertainment, restaurants, and saunas, and includes profiles of key gay and lesbian personalities. Provides up-to-date information on all the best places that have emerged during the decade-long explosion of London's gay and lesbian scene.

Customer Reviews:

This book is very clear, concise, and up to date.......2007-01-04

This book tells you more than the typical person would want to know, so you get to choose how much you want to discover an area of town. It breaks the metropolis into areas of focus, so it is easy to follow. I highly recommend this book to every gay person who plans on traveling to London.

The Actor's Guide To Greed (Actor's Guide To...)

Average customer rating:

Gave as a gift
Another great entry in a great series
So-so
Poorly researched
Multi-city murders make for a great time!

The Actor's Guide To Greed (Actor's Guide To...)
Rick Copp
Manufacturer: Kensington
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Gay | Mystery & Thrillers | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0758209606

Customer Reviews:

Gave as a gift.......2007-01-09

And the reader enjoyed it, so I pass on his thumbs-up.

Another great entry in a great series.......2006-04-21

I am a huge fan of 'The Actors Guide to...' series. The series not only features a head scratching whodunit, but it is absolutely hilarious. Jarrod Jarvis is a "self-obsessed, sarcastic, career-obsessed former child star", it might sound like he's a character that one would hate but it is the exact opposite. Jarrod is one of the most charming and funny characters I've come across in quite a while. He also has a beefy, hunky policeman for a boyfriend, Charlie. In this entry Jarrod is off to London to do a play with an all star cast and during the opening night Oscar winner and the plays lead Claire Richard, Jarrod's one ally in the play, is murdered. From that point on the book begins to take twists and turns until a staisfying ending. The main disappointment for me was the lack of interaction between Jarrod and Charlie, I enjoyed their playful banter that was found in the previous series and hopefully there will be future books and Charlie will have a larger role. A great book, fun and entertaining. This book definitely won't disappoint fans of the mystery genre.

So-so.......2006-03-23

I bought this based on the overall good reviews and the fact that I like light/cozy mysteries. I had just finished Joe Keenan's hilarious new book "My Lucky Star," and perhaps my standards for funny escapist fiction were unnaturally high because of that. Whatever the reason, this book fell flat for me.

As another reviewer observed, it's loaded with errors and the plot is incredibly unrealistic. Normally I can live with the first and what the heck, I've been known to live with the second. I mean, I was a Xena: Warrior Princess fan, and in the Xenaverse, Alexander the Great and Julius Ceasar were contemporaries. Accuracy? Realism? Ptooey.

But to make that leap, something in the story has to take you by the hand and get you there, and this book didn't do it. We're told he loves his cop boyfriend, but we never see it or feel it. We're told these actors are good or bad, but again, we never see it or feel it. Not even on the level of a farce or screwball comedy. It's just kind of dull.

There's nothing horrible about this book, and it's a good enough way to fill an hour or two, maybe while on a plane ride or at the beach. But there are better fluffy escapist books.

Poorly researched.......2006-03-16

I wanted to like this novel. Who after all goes out to buy a novel to hate it or pick holes in it apart from literary critics... As someone who has spent summer vacations in London and has an interest in the theater (or theatre for any Brits reading) the errors on this book were ridiculous... So many of the errors could have been avoided... Michael Caine has NEVER appeared on stage in a Shakespeare (or any other classic play). His one performance was as Horatio in a television production.

In British theaters they do not have make-up stations...

So many of the errors could have been avoided by using Google or come to that even a street map. (The writer has a character walking to the theater where he is working quickly but by a route that would have taken him out of his way!!!)

The Savoy Hotel is NOT in Covent Garden!!! It is on the south side of the Strand! Covent Garden is to the north of the Strand! Where was the editor? (Was there an editor??)

It smacked of a novel written quickly by someone working in television or film who hasn't worked in a professional theater in his or her life. As a result of these errors one's attention as a reader was continually being distracted from the plot...

I hope Mr Copp learns from these disasters and writes about what he either knows, or is prepared to find out about!

Multi-city murders make for a great time!.......2006-02-23

I've read all three "The Actor's Guide to" books by Rick Copp, and this latest installment is certainly evidence that Rick keeps getting better and better with every book he writes. The humor is sharper, the twists are more harrowing, and the fun of it is like riding a roller coaster!

Greed opens a few short months where the second book ended with Jarrod watching himself in the horror movie he's sorry he ever made. When Jarrod gets an offer to star in a new play penned by a former sitcom writer for his show "Go to Your Room" he jumps at the chance, especially when he finds out he'll be opening in London!

The murderous mayhem of the play imitates life as someone in the cast ends up dead, and when Jarrod is considered a suspect it's up to him to find the real culprit and clear his name.

We travel from Los Angeles, to London, to Greece, to Mykenos for a thrill ride of witty humor and intelligent intrigue.

The best part, for me, of Rick Copp's books is the continued and deepining relationship between Jarrod and his partner Charlie, it's nice to see an important part of such a story take the front seat next to the murders, as it should be!

I hope to see more from Rick Copp in the near future, he's definately got my attention, and I'll be on the look out for more of his work.

Average customer rating:

Gay London
Graham Parker
Manufacturer: Metro Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

Travel | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

Book Description

Graham Parker reviews all of London¹s gay social clubs, political organizations, health services, restaurants, and night spots, ensuring that gay men and women will enjoy their visit to the capital. With maps and travel directions to all the key areas of interest, this is an essential guide to the city¹s gay scene.

Average customer rating:

London Scene 1995 (Gay City Guide)
Al Clarke
Manufacturer: Heretic Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

Travel | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Travel Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 0854492089

Average customer rating:

Detour's London
Jonathan Nicholson
Manufacturer: Detour Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

Travel | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0963598317

Average customer rating:

Dyke London: A Guide
Rosa Ainley
Manufacturer: Ellipsis London, Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Nonfiction | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

Travel | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1899858741

Book Description

Clubs come and go, homosexuality goes in and out of style, but the life of the London dyke continues. Where to go to take care of the daily necessities: buying underwear, kitchen equipment, food and, of course, make-up? Perfectly formed for the combat trouser pocket, this guide gives you the necessary, describing venues to tempt everydyke - football teams, discussion group-ees, lipstick lesbians and the rest - whether pleasure and/or curiosity propels you to the genteel Vita's on the edge of Bloomsbury or towards Soho's Candy Bar. In the early 2000s there is no shortage of dedicated lesbian space, from the everyday/all day to the annual event. In London today there are sexual health clinics, dining-out groups, yoga classes, history walks, and sex shops, all prefixed with the L-word. Aside from the specifically lesbian or lesgay, Dyke London suggests venues and pastimes to suit whatever level of (in)visibility you might crave: those where a lesbian presence might be expected, and those where sexuality is neither ticket nor barrier. Places where a dyke in London might like to just Be. (Apologies to Calvin Klein).

Gaytimes London (Gay Times Travel Guides)

Average customer rating:

Of Dubious Value

Gaytimes London (Gay Times Travel Guides)
John Szponarski
Manufacturer: Absolute Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Nonfiction | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

Travel | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Time Out Gay and Lesbian London (Time Out Guides)

ASIN: 1899791442

Book Description

An indispensable in-depth guide to everything that is gay in the world's gayest city. Spinning off from Gay Times Great Britain & Ireland this first city guide in the series covers everything that the gay traveller to London might need. From culture to clubs, pubs, bars, saunas, help and information. Tourist musts and musn'ts, social dos and don'ts, it's all here.

Customer Reviews:

Of Dubious Value.......2003-01-01

Planning a trip to London in 2003, I purchased Gaytimes London with high hopes. Amazon describes it as an "in-depth guide to everything that is gay in" London. Wrong. The book's own "Forward" similarly reports "gay activity crammed into hundreds of different venues across the city: this guide lists them all." Not true.

The only comprehensive coverage is of clubs, pubs, and sex venues for gay men. In fact, the entire guide seems written for gay men rather than all GLBTs. Nothing wrong with that-except that the guide implies it's for all members of our community.

Now, what's missing? A lot. Most glaringly, this guide doesn't list any gay-friendly restaurants or cafes. Not one. It doesn't list any GLBT community groups: no churches, sports associations, political groups, etc. Nor, any 12-step programs. Nor, any women's health groups (although it does list 33 AIDS/HIV groups). The guide reports just one gay men's health club (Paris) and just one gay theatre (Drill Hall). C'mon, London has 7 million people, and 10% of that is.... The point here is that a lot of common GLBT gathering places-where tourists can meet locals-are just not listed.

Further, the guide seems awkwardly produced with an inexplicable organization. For example, the gay section lists "Accommodation" [sic] between "Saunas" and "Cruising Grounds." "Retail and shops" comes next, followed by "Escorts." And the listings are generally citywide, rather than by neighborhood, which makes it difficult to plan a night in a particular neighborhood. I would first need to pick the places I want to visit, then organize them by area. It would be much easier if the guide did that already.

Additionally, the type face is very small (perhaps, 8 point), which seems too small for reading in less lighted places like pubs, tube stations, or airports. The maps are small and generally unannotated. Very few web sites are listed, which is inconvenient and seems odd in this internet age. Finally, there's no index, also inconvenient and something I've never not seen in a travel guide.

Book Description

Part of the Tempus History & Guide series, this book offers an in-depth look at Muswell Hill, a suburb in North London.

Out Around London (Out Around - Thomas Cook)

Average customer rating:

Out Around London (Out Around - Thomas Cook)
Paul Clements
Manufacturer: Thomas Cook Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

Travel | Gay & Lesbian | Subjects | Books

Book Description

Created in conjunction with the leading Gay newspaper/magazine publisher in the UK, OutAround is a series of pocket format, affordable guides, concentrating on a mix of specifically gay-related topics and mainstream topics where gay travelers have specific requirements or need extra advice.
Each OutAround guide features:
¥ Accommodation, restaurant events, and entertainment listings
¥ Nightlife, clubs, and bars in the area
¥ Gay background and history of the destination
¥ Official and popular attitudes to gays, including do's and don'ts
¥ Sources of support and information

Book Description

ut and Alex make an odd pair. Tut does more than keep his grief over his mother's death to himself-he keeps everything, even his voice, to himself. Alex, on the other hand, is talkative, outgoing, and in-your-face, which is exactly where Tut doesn't want her. Tut hasn't much choice in the matter because Alex isn't going anywhere. But just when Alex has wiggled her way into Tut's life, suddenly she seems to have her own need for escape. Now Alex is in trouble and the only way for Tut to help her is to get back into a boat. Is he willing to risk everything for his only friend? That's what he's desperately trying to figure out. And what if it's just too late? J. D. McNeill weaves a compelling story of loss and survival, peopled with one-of-a-kind characters, in this auspicious debut.

Customer Reviews:

Great Book.......2006-06-29

I am 12 years old and I just finished this book. It is a great story of love, loss, sadness, and adventure. You will not be able to put this but down. You will be filled with sadness for Tut (thats the main charaters name). Trust me on this review. It is a great story.

loved the setting.......2005-12-22

this one was tough. the author was really good at making me feel like i was IN new england. i felt the cold and the wind and the water and the salt in the air and smelled the fish. but i just did not feel tut. i even felt alex, his loud, annoying and neglected (almost to the point of abuse) neighbor.

i loved tut's smart allecky internal dialog, but he just didn't seem real enough to me. also, the ending was a little pat. every single thing was tied up and every single part ended happy. not that i don't love happy endings, mind you, this one just didn't feel real to me.

Deeply felt and engrossing.......2005-06-25

My 11 year old son and I were completey drawn in to this novel. JD Mcneil has beautifully rendered the pain and sense of loss experienced by her main character, a teenaged boy named Tut. A traumatic experience has left him speechless and his father, a struggling fisherman, an alconolic. Life can be bleak in this coastal Maine town, yet ample warmth is provided by the fellow townfolk, who are supportive while maintaining their distance. One person who does not maintain her distance is Alex, a new girl Tut's age with family problems of her own. She reaches out to Tut, and she serves as an accent of bright color in this story, otherwise painted with subdued tones.
This book hooked us in from beginning to end.

The Last Toast to Lutefisk!: 102 Toasts, Tidbits, and Trifles for Your Next Lutefisk Dinner

Average customer rating:

The Last Toast to Lutefisk!: 102 Toasts, Tidbits, and Trifles for Your Next Lutefisk Dinner
Gary Legwold
Manufacturer: Conrad Henry PR
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

General | Special Occasions | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

Cooking | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Jokes & Riddles | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0965202712

Book Description

The Last Toast to Lutefisk! bursts with humor and sentiment and is a cant-put-it-down kind of book. You will laugh at these toasts and use them for years to add life and color to lutefisk dinnerswhich are already plenty lively (dont ya know). The Last Toast to Lutefisk! will bring out the writer, speaker, dramatist, and humorist within you. These 102 toasts, jokes, and nuggets of history will help you say, in an eloquent or witty way, what youve always wanted to express to your fellow lutefisk lovers. Here is a sampling: Days of ease and nights of pleasure This lutefisk surpasses measure. May your lutefisk be flakier than your friends. To apprehension and lutefisk: Be happy my friend, hang easy and loose Getting tense bout lutefisk is just no use. It goes down, tastes good, and makes you feel well, Providing (ahem) that you get past the smell. Or this timely joke: What are the odds of your church starting its lutefisk dinner at 12:50? About 10 to 1. To lutefisk: It makes a lot of scents! The Last Toast to Lutefisk! is a treasure of a book that will make you and your lutefisk-loving friends blush, reflect, maybe cry, and certainly laugh. So... Heres to cold nights, warm friends, and lutefisk to serve them!

The Last Word on Lutefisk: True Tales of Cod and Tradition

Average customer rating:

The Last Word on Lutefisk: True Tales of Cod and Tradition
Gary Legwold
Manufacturer: Conrad Henry PR
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Baking | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

General | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books

Cooking | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Hunting & Fishing | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0965202704

Book Description

The Last Word on Lutefisk provides you with the most comprehensive collection of facts, fiction, and folklore surrounding this simple fish with the unforgettable scent. Here, a historical account of this colorful lutefisk tradition is mixed with homespun tales, humor, tours, poetry, lyrics--even lutefisk cheers! You will find:

* Old country travel and lutefisk lore
* Tales of Norse fishermen--and great color photographs
* Why lye is used in soaking the fish
* Secrets of making your own superior lutefisk
* Why lutefisk does not build character--it reveals it
* A directory of the 300 finest lutefisk dinners in North America

A taste of both culture and culinary traditions, The Last Word on Lutefisk invites you to partake in this peculiar, exuberant Scandinavian feast.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books