Review by Booklist Review
An invigorating collection of White's short pieces for the New Yorker's "Notes and Comments" and "Talk of the Town" sections. White, a consummate essayist and children's author (Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little), had the twins gifts of firm opinions and limber, poised prose. His sentences are perfect pitches with the snap of a fastball or the surprise of a curve. White takes on McCarthyism and all forms of censorship, advertising, politicking, and faddism. He believes in protecting the environment and articulates the paradox of hawking the "unspoiled wilderness" to people who will then spoil it. An ardent admirer of Thoreau, White savors the world around him; he is funny, compassionate, and aware. Not previously published in book form, these short essays are a delightful addition to the White canon. ~--Donna Seaman
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Essayist and author of such children's favorites as Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little, White also served as an editorial writer for The New Yorker . Many of these short pieces have been included in this collection, which traces White's development as a writer from his short, almost flippant works of the Twenties and Thirties to the longer, more thoughtful and penetrating essays of the Forties and Fif ties. Wide-ranging in subject matter, these essays tackle such diverse subjects as Khrushchev, re volving doors, and Sunday drivers in New York, all with a sense of humor. Besides bringing all these gems together, this book offers a valuable historical perspective, especially of the Cold War years, and some lessons for our present-day leaders. Recommended for most libraries.-- Nancy R. Ives, SUNY at Geneseo (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
