Sunday, June 4, 2017

The New York Times: Footsteps: From Ferrante's Naples to Hammett's San Francisco, Literary Pilgrimages Around the World -- Book Review



From the Publisher: "A curated collection of the New York Times' travel column, "Footsteps," exploring iconic authors' relationships to landmarks and cities around the world. Based on the popular New York Times travel column, Footsteps is an anthology of literary pilgrimages, exploring the geographic muses behind some of history's greatest writers. From the "dangerous, dirty and seductive" streets of Naples, the setting for Elena Ferrante's famous Neapolitan novels, to the "stone arches, creaky oaken doors, and riverside paths" of Oxford, the backdrop for Alice's adventures in Wonderland, Footsteps takes a fresh approach to literary tourism, appealing to readers and travel enthusiasts alike."

The past few years have found me increasingly interested in travel stories as I've had the opportunity to step out into the world a little myself. Footsteps, a collection of travel essays centered around the homes and haunts of literature "greats", started out interesting, even though I was unfamiliar with a few of the writers. I enjoyed learning about these figures and their places in the world. After awhile though, the stories became more tedious as the writers became more and more obscure. 

Ironically, it was the story of Mark Twain that was my favorite; a writer I vowed years ago to never read after discovering the horrid things he said about Jane Austen. I feel there was a striking imbalance between writers who contributed positivity and decency to the world and those who prattled off drink and sex-fueled mumblings. Overall, I was not super impressed with this collection.

Blogging for Books gifted me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

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