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Nature, United States History - General & Miscellaneous, Nature - General
American Places by William Knowlton Zinsser β€” book cover

American Places

by Zinsser, William Knowlton
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Overview

A noted writer reports on his pilgrimage to 15 of the USA's most visited and cherished historic sites and brings us an inspiring and moving account of what he has discovered. "This inspiring guide includes places everyone means to go to some day."--New York Times.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

This collection of inquisitive, hopeful, patriotic essays, many of them previously published in such journals as National Geographic Traveler , will have cynical readers putting their views of today's America on hold. Zinsser ( On Writing Well ), a WW II veteran who grew up during the era when Gutzon Borglum sculpted the heads of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt at Mount Rushmore, journeys to 15 American landmarks to find out why they attract so many tourists. He learns that visitors to Yellowstone National Park are recreating the adventures they had with their parents, draws comparisons between Americans' ``macho love of weapons and macho frontier past'' at the Alamo, discovers in Disneyland that ``Main Street circa 1900 is America's lost paradise.'' He also speaks with architect Maya Lin about her Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Ala., and considers the ``lost dignity of presidential conduct'' while exploring Ike's hometown, Abilene, Tex. Attention to old-fashioned values marks these edifying, intriguing history lessons. (May)

Book Details

Published
May 28, 1992
Publisher
New York : HarperCollins Publishers, c1992.
Pages
256
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9780060166380

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