State by State: A Panoramic Portrait of America | 
 enlarge | Authors: Matt Weiland, Sean Wilsey
Publisher: Ecco
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
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Rating:  44 reviews
Sales Rank: 771
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 608
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.3
ISBN: 0061470902
Dewey Decimal Number: 973
EAN: 9780061470905
ASIN: 0061470902
Publication Date: September 1, 2008
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Product Description
From the bestselling editors of The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup comes an American road trip in book form: original writing on all 50 states by 50 of our finest novelists, journalists, and essayists Inspired by the example of the legendary WPA American Guide series of the 1930s and '40s, now 50 of our foremost writers have produced original pieces of reportage and memoir that capture the 50 states in our time, creating a fresh portrait of America as it lives and breathes today. At turns poignant and funny, and always insightful, these 50 writers tell us something lasting and revealing about each state through personal memory or contemporary reporting that captures the essential qualities that make each state its own. With an array of revealing facts and figures comparing the 50 states in a range of surprising measures (toothlessness, military enlistment, suicide), State by State is more than an anthology: It is a classic American road movie in book form. Featuring original writing on all fifty states Alabama by George Packer
Alaska by Paul Greenberg
Arizona by Lydia Millet
Arkansas by Kevin Brockmeier
California by William T. Vollmann
Colorado by Benjamin Kunkel
Connecticut by Rick Moody
Delaware by Craig Taylor
Florida by Joshua Ferris
Georgia by Ha Jin
Hawaii by Tara Bray Smith
Idaho by Anthony Doerr
Illinois by Dave Eggers
Indiana by Susan Choi
Iowa by Dagoberto Gilb
Kansas by Jim Lewis
Kentucky by John Jeremiah Sullivan
Louisiana by Joshua Clark
Maine by Heidi Julavits
Maryland by Myla Goldberg
Massachusetts by John Hodgman
Michigan by Mohammed Naseehu Ali
Minnesota by Philip Connors
Mississippi by Barry Hannah
Missouri by Jacki Lyden
Montana by Sarah Vowell
Nebraska by Alexander Payne
Nevada by Charles Bock
New Hampshire by Will Blythe
New Jersey by Anthony Bourdain
New Mexico by Ellery Washington
New York by Jonathan Franzen
North Carolina by Randall Kenan
North Dakota by Louise Erdrich
Ohio by Susan Orlean
Oklahoma by S.E. Hinton
Oregon by Joe Sacco
Pennsylvania by Andrea Lee
Rhode Island by Jhumpa Lahiri
South Carolina by Jack Hitt
South Dakota by Said Sayrafiezadeh
Tennessee by Ann Patchett
Texas by Cristina Henriquez
Utah by David Rakoff
Vermont by Alison Bechdel
Virginia by Tony Horwitz
Washington by Carrie Brownstein
West Virginia by Jayne Anne Phillips
Wisconsin by Daphne Beal
Wyoming by Alexandra Fuller and an afterword on Washington, D.C.: A Conversation with Edward P. Jones
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| Customer Reviews: Read 39 more reviews...
State by state statement November 20, 2008
Although some of these essays are much better than others, overall this is a fascinating view of the 50 states from unique perspectives.
worth reading and keeping on the shelf for reference November 20, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The thick book of essays by 50 writers describing 50 states is an interesting anthology. The essays are very different in style, form and length. I believe there are ones to suit anybody's literary taste, from long, descriptive, guide-like narratives (e.g. California by William T. Vollman, which I enjoyed very much) through short postcards (e.g. Maryland by Myla Goldberg, I think a bit too laconic), satirical pieces (Massachusetts by John Hodgman, in my opinion a little overdone and smug) to inventive, novel forms (New York by Jonathan Franzen, in a form of an interview, funny and fresh), personal accounts (my favorites: very nostalgic Florida by Joshua Ferris and Georgia by Ha Jin, which I especially liked, as it showed the experience of a foreigner, very similar to my own) and even a cartoon (Oregon by Joe Sacco, which employs visual effects in addition to words to describe the state characteristics, creating a very nice effect). The diversity makes this book an uneven read, but I believe different essays can really suit different attitudes and moods.
Some of the writers' names were familiar to me (Franzen, Erdrich, Jin, Eggers, Lahiri, Fuller, Patchett), but the majority weren't. I was happy to discover these authors and will follow up on them. Note, that the authors did not have to be natives of the states they wrote about, which adds some flavor and honesty to the accounts; the local patriotism, if any, is mostly acquired. The preface by Matt Weiland provided a nice intro and mentiones some Americana I would like to read, too. The encyclopaedic details about each state make this book a staple for each bookshelf.
The photos in the middle were a welcome addition. I did not understand other reviewars' objections about the photo representing Maine (it shows a row of nude women, photographed with their backs to the camera, completely benign; I felt it cannot be offensive even for a five year old - otherwise the art from Rubens to Modigliani should be also considered shocking and offensive; but then, I am from Europe, so who am I to judge the American attitudes to the upbringing of children) and the comments on the pronounced liberalism of the whole book - I did not feel it; to my foreign taste, it gave me a good overview of the diversity and complexity found in this vast country, with its landscapes, art, infrastructure and, most importantly, the behaviors and habits of the inhabitants of the fifty states.
State by State: A Portrait of America November 19, 2008
This is an absorbing book. Each chapter is a story which reflects the atmosphere of the state it represents. There is one chapter for each State in the Union. It's a book that one can read a chapter and come back to it later, much like a book of short stories. The book is well written and put together. I think you will like it, and would recommend it.
 Eclectic collection of odd stories. November 17, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
The premise of this book was to collect short stories about all 50 states to parallel the old WPA series of books from the depression to make work for unemployed leftist writers. This collection is similar in several ways. All 50 states are included, and the writers are, without exception as far as I could see, leftist.
One warning is that this collection is not suitable for non-adults containing lots of objectionable language along with portrayals of deviant sexual practices including promiscuity, sadism and homosexualty. Indeed, one of my criticisms is that the sliminess and bigotry against traditional culture is so prevalent in this book of short articles that it must have been edited to bring out this bias. You might justly ask yourself what in the world promiscuity, sadism and perversion have to do with a collection of stories about the 50 states. Exactly my point.
The majority of articles had very little about the state or anything in them; rather they were personal stories about how much the author hated their state and got out as quickly as they could. There were a number of exceptions to these stories, and some of these are quite good. You will recognize a number of the writers who have excellent reputations.
So you should look on this book as a collection of quirky, biased, sometimes smutty, collection of personal reminiscences rather than stories about place (with some exceptions). The writing was pretty good in general, even the objectionable stories that insulted anyone who thought differently than the author. I enjoyed sharing some of them with co-workers from the various states portrayed. Most of them, like me, were amazed at how biased the authors were and by how far they missed the gestalt of the states in question. I really was expecting much more, especially given the list of authors. Just goes to show you reputation does not guarantee a good read. Two reluctant stars.
A little taste, often savoury, of the great complexity of America November 16, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Matt Weiland moved back to the States after living abroad for four years and spent days tasting its complexity: re-reading Moby-Dick and Huckleberry Finn, bicycling on the Jersey shore, driving through the Midwest. Sean Wilsey spent hours (at 45 mph) driving 2,364 miles through the US in 2002. Both decided that it would be interesting to create a book that described what made each state special is some particular ways.
The result is a sampling, a sort of condensed version of the WPA American Guide series of the Federal Writers' Project in the 1930's. There were hundreds of volumes that grew out of that Project, but the "crowning achievement" were the forty-eight state guides.
This sampling consists of fifty one essays by different writers, varying in quality of course but together make a compelling view of the country. For example, Ellery Washington is biographical, focusing on a lightning strike. Johathan Franzen "interviews" the New York State's Publicist who is a bit insulted that New York is part of a "fifty state cattle call." Anthony Bourdain is a bit earthy in his description of New Jersey, challenging its official state song -- "Born to Run" by Springsteen -- with some of the beautiful parts of the state. Daphne Beal provides a short historical survey of Wisconsin. I know these four states best and found something true to my experience in each of them. I'm sure the others express some reality as well.
The Afterword covers Washington D.C. based on a conversation with Edward P. Jones. "In December, 1999 some pay stubs from the 1790s were discovered in the National Archives. The stubs ... authorized the commissioners overseeing the development of the nation's new capital to recompense slave owners five dollars a moth for the use of their slaves in the construction of the Capitol building and the White House." The essay is a wonderful description of the story of the growth of one of our greatest cities with a black majority.
There is an album of fifty black and white and colored photographs from each state, many of icons like Mount Rushmore: "How disappointing it is to visit Mount Rushmore in person. It is neither more nor less than the image we have been seeing of it all our lives." Others are startling: the ten chaste but nude "Sirens of Maine welcome you" -- "Insult with a Smile." A friend from Maine comments: "What with mud season, black fly season, mosquito season, and then the frosty months, it's SO not the image I'd put forward of Maine. More the flannel shirts and L.L. Bean boots and hunter orange vests and puffy down vests."
The book ends with a statistical survey of sorts, listing the states in order of population, population increase, bankruptcy filing rates, incarceration, toothlessness, and more.
I found this book a wonderful survey of the complexity of this great country, sometimes invoking a smile, sometimes a bit of wonder, sometimes pain.
Robert C. Ross 2008
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