About book Strange Stones: Dispatches From East And West (2013)
In Hessler’s preface to this book, he describes how his father taught him to observe people and ask himself questions about them. These lessons have stood Peter Hessler in good stead, for his descriptions of people he has met and places he has been are fascinating. Although he spent many years in China, some of the pieces in this book originate elsewhere. The first story in the book is about how he took a dare to eat rats in two different restaurants in China and compare them. One chapter is on the Great Wall of China, which isn’t what most Americans think it is, not one long connecting wall. His chapter on the town and people of Uravan, Colorado resonated with me because I know someone who once lived there. The only chapter that I couldn’t really connect to was the one about the Chinese automobile industry, although a related chapter on Chinese people learning to drive more than made up for it. Hessler is now living in Cairo with his wife and daughters. It will be interesting to see what he writes about next. Peter Hessler is one of my favorite writers and this collection of essays was a treat. My favorite pieces are those set in China, plus two pieces - Uranium Widows and Dr. Don -set in southwest Colorado. Uranium Widows is an excellent piece about public health in uranium workers. I was impressed with his open-mindedness and with the medical research he quoted. Dr. Don encapsulates what is best about living in a small town. The Preface was fascinating. Hessler talks about trying to find the balance of how much of himself to include in an essay. I think he usually excels at this balance. Recently he has been writing essays about Egypt, and I have been having trouble reading these. After reading the Preface, I think what is missing in the Egyptian essays is that sense of personal involvement and balance. I know that he is fluent in Chinese and that this fluency makes his stories from China sing, so it may be his lack of fluency in Arabic that makes the Egyptian essays flat. But this is an aside - there are no Egyptian essays in this collection.I loved learning that Hessler studied under John McPhee and that McPhee was instrumental in getting Hessler into the New Yorker. (I have the highest admiration for McPhee and still consider him one of the most important essayists of our time.)This collection was like meeting with an old friend and remembering how valuable that friendship is.
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Good stuff. A wonderful collection of stories. A narrative non-fiction book you'll enjoy.
—Danny
Very good stories. Good humor. highly recommend this book.
—gherlcute
