January Reviews Roundup

Here at David R. Godine, Publisher, we strive to produce high quality books above all else. So, when our books and authors are praised, we hope you'll forgive us for acting like proud parents. Please join us in celebrating the recent success of a few of our talented authors.


Just one month into the new year and we're already excited about the press some of our titles have been receiving! For starters, Appalachia USA was featured on the Lens blog of the New York Times and commended for its "deeply personal touch." You can read the full article about photographer Builder Levy here.
 

Vanity Fair also mentioned the title, saying "Photographer Builder Levy's Appalachia USA (David R. Godine) does for today's coal miners what Walker Evans did for sharecroppers and tenant farmers in the Dust Bowl."


There was also a beautiful review of Writing The Garden by Elizabeth Barlow Rodgers in the Patriot Ledger.

 Here's a highlight from that review:

Writing the Garden, a collection from the eighteenth century to today, offers an opportunity to meet writers who have inspired gardeners for decades. It almost seems as if author Elizabeth Barlow Rogers has organized a retreat where writers come forth to inspire the gardener.

That’s probably why reading the book is like meeting old friends who just happen to be gardeners.

And who can forget about all the kind words Peter Korn has been receiving for his book Why We Make Things and Why It Matters. 

 
There is a New York Times interview with Peter here, in which he talks about teaching creativity.

We want to instill confidence in people that they themselves have the ability to create something, and that begins in the design process. It’s not light bulbs going off and voodoo. That happens, but it happens because you’re in a process that allows it to happen. The most common approach is to get a pencil and paper and let the pencil do the thinking.

There are also two other interviews with Peter on the radio. One on Radio Boston and one on the Maine Public Broadcasting Network. You can listen to both in full.

And finally, this month saw a review of Linda Bamber's Taking What I Like. In her review, Alyse Bensel writes,

In exploring the historical lineage and artistic interpretations of Shakespeare, Bamber's collection reads as part literary criticism and part re-writing. Each story tries to open up these culturally relevant characters to discern a new perspective.

As well, there are many blog reviews of Bamber's story collection as part of her ongoing blog tour, which you can find a complete account of here.