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Phillip Lopate
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The Art of the Personal Essay: An Anthology from the Classical Era to the Present Paperback – 15 January 1997

by Phillip Lopate (Author)
4.5 out of 5 stars 302
Edition: 1st Anchor Books Pbk. Ed
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For more than four hundred years, the personal essay has been one of the richest and most vibrant of all literary forms. Distinguished from the detached formal essay by its friendly, conversational tone, its loose structure, and its drive toward candor and self-disclosure, the personal essay seizes on the minutiae of daily life-vanities, fashions, foibles, oddballs, seasonal rituals, love and disappointment, the pleasures of solitude, reading, taking a walk -- to offer insight into the human condition and the great social and political issues of the day. The Art of the Personal Essay is the first anthology to celebrate this fertile genre. By presenting more than seventy-five personal essays, including influential forerunners from ancient Greece, Rome, and the Far East, masterpieces from the dawn of the personal essay in the sixteenth century, and a wealth of the finest personal essays from the last four centuries, editor Phillip Lopate, himself an acclaimed essayist, displays the tradition of the personal essay in all its historical grandeur, depth, and diversity.
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  1. ISBN-10
    038542339X
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0385423397
  3. Edition
    1st Anchor Books Pbk. Ed
  4. Publisher
    Anchor Books
  5. Publication date
    15 January 1997
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    15.34 x 4.14 x 23.27 cm
  8. Print length
    832 pages
  9. See all details
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Product description

Review

"A wonderful book. The most charming smorgasbord imaginable of essays from around the world." -- Diane Cole, USA Today.

"Without a doubt, this is the most nourishing essay collection I've read in years." -- Susan Burmeister-Brown, Portland Oregonian.

"A labor of deeply felt love and keenly honed scholarship by an essay authority who knows his territory down to his bones." -- Christian Science Monitor.

"The best available [essay anthology] no matter how crowded the field." -- Chicago Tribune.

"The striking thing is how much Lopate has managed to pack in, and how high a standard he has managed to maintain." -- John Gross, New York Newsday.

"Packed with personality and beguiling first-person prose... of reminders of the perils and pleasures of the craft." -- The Wall Street Journal.

From the Back Cover

For more than four hundred years, the personal essay has been one of the richest and most vibrant of all literary forms. Distinguished from the detached formal essay by its friendly, conversational tone, its loose structure, and its drive toward candor and self-disclosure, the personal essay seizes on the minutiae of daily life-vanities, fashions, foibles, oddballs, seasonal rituals, love and disappointment, the pleasures of solitude, reading, taking a walk -- to offer insight into the human condition and the great social and political issues of the day. "The Art of the Personal Essay is the first anthology to celebrate this fertile genre. By presenting more than seventy-five personal essays, including influential forerunners from ancient Greece, Rome, and the Far East, masterpieces from the dawn of the personal essay in the sixteenth century, and a wealth of the finest personal essays from the last four centuries, editor Phillip Lopate, himself an acclaimed essayist, displays the tradition of the personal essay in all its historical grandeur, depth, and diversity.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Anchor Books; 1st Anchor Books Pbk. Ed edition (15 January 1997)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 832 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 038542339X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0385423397
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.34 x 4.14 x 23.27 cm
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 302

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Phillip Lopate

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4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
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pingpong
5.0 out of 5 stars The seller Chestnut Hill Books is Awesome
Reviewed in the United States on 12 January 2023
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This review is for the seller Chestnut Hill Books. The book was packaged very nicely. Unlike Amazon nowadays, this book was wrapped and put in a box to prevent from damage. Item received in top shape. However, it will take a while to read this book as it is a pretty thick book.
One person found this helpful
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Subho Deep
5.0 out of 5 stars Go-to reference book for Essayists
Reviewed in India on 28 September 2022
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A wonderful compilation of classic essays. If anyone is trying to hone their essay writing skills, this book is the go-to reference. I am thoroughly enjoying reading this book.
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David H
5.0 out of 5 stars The definitive anthology of essays!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 February 2019
Verified Purchase
This book is the definitive collection of essays that will prove a valuable read to students of literature and the wider public alike. It includes essays from antiquity through to modernity, and serves as an interesting means of assessing the ebbs and flows of various cultures over time.

The editor, Phillip Lopate, is known as both a teacher and author of the personal essays, and has compiled some of the best examples of the form throughout history. A particular joy is his lengthy introduction, which sets out to describe the nature of the essay and provide some preliminary guidance on how to use the book as a learning resource.

This book has proven interesting to read in its own right – including topics as diverse as food, sex, nature and illness – and as a means of developing myself as an essayist. The selected essays, diverse as they are, are unfailing in the joy they bring to read and the insights they deliver. This anthology deserves a place on everyone’s bookshelf and I could not recommend it enough.

If you found this review useful in any way I’d be super grateful if you clicked the “helpful” button below to let me know :)
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David H
5.0 out of 5 stars The definitive anthology of essays!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 February 2019
This book is the definitive collection of essays that will prove a valuable read to students of literature and the wider public alike. It includes essays from antiquity through to modernity, and serves as an interesting means of assessing the ebbs and flows of various cultures over time.

The editor, Phillip Lopate, is known as both a teacher and author of the personal essays, and has compiled some of the best examples of the form throughout history. A particular joy is his lengthy introduction, which sets out to describe the nature of the essay and provide some preliminary guidance on how to use the book as a learning resource.

This book has proven interesting to read in its own right – including topics as diverse as food, sex, nature and illness – and as a means of developing myself as an essayist. The selected essays, diverse as they are, are unfailing in the joy they bring to read and the insights they deliver. This anthology deserves a place on everyone’s bookshelf and I could not recommend it enough.

If you found this review useful in any way I’d be super grateful if you clicked the “helpful” button below to let me know :)
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17 people found this helpful
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T. Gow
5.0 out of 5 stars A keeper!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 March 2018
Verified Purchase
What's not to love. A well curated smorgasbord of personal essays from old to new. A book to dip into and enjoy.
3 people found this helpful
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JR Pinto
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Anthology!!!
Reviewed in the United States on 23 November 2004
Verified Purchase
Laurie Stone, the essayist and creative writing teacher, recommended this book to me as the most essential volume on the personal essay. I could not agree more. The editor, Philip Lopate, is one of the most well-respected authors of the personal essay and he has compiled this anthology of pieces from the classical era to the present. The book works well for readers and writers alike. Lopate, in his lengthy introduction, gives an overview of the personal essay, and instructions on how to use this book as a learning tool. It is divided into several sections, beginning with the essay's forerunners in the classical period. Michel De Montaigne, the father of the personal essay, gets his own section. Personally, I did not find it useful to read the book cover-to-cover - I read it in reverse. I started out with the most recent, contemporary essays - those most accessible to me - and went backwards in order to see the devolution of the essay, as it were.

The essay is fast becoming one of my favorite forms - it is short, funny, and insightful. I highly recommend this book to ANYONE.
62 people found this helpful
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