Each essay here seems a kind of heirloom, important and timeless, a real window into the soul of American culture and its literary figures. These words give us a place in which to find rest, and a clarity and depth of understanding regarding today’s trends from a man well acquainted with the wounds and gifts of this world. Woiwode offers us a collection of insightful and provocative commentaries that are certain to produce a marked upwelling of joy as we revel in his mastery of language and stimulating observations of both literature and culture. An absorbing work to read and reread.