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tenderedge's review against another edition
5.0
I've discovered that I'll enjoy anything Andrew Solomon writes...
rachelthecrook's review against another edition
5.0
I just finished this and got really sad that I have no Andrew Solomon books to read/listen to. I am always amazed at his insight and humility and humour, and this book was no exception.
firerosearien's review against another edition
4.0
Some of the essays are wonderful - I think the one about Libya under Qaddafi has stuck with me the most - others seemed a bit of a slog to get through, as I have limited interest in modern art, which seems to be the author's favorite topic.
supersara's review against another edition
1.0
#DNF in September 2021
Def travel books are not my jam.
Andrew Solomon is still my non fiction crush, but I just could not finish this one.
Def travel books are not my jam.
Andrew Solomon is still my non fiction crush, but I just could not finish this one.
onceandfuturelaura's review against another edition
3.0
This book begins with Andrew Solomon, then seven, learning about the Holocaust. (1). He kept asking his father questions about how such a thing could happen without getting a satisfactory explanation. "Pure evil" was the answer at least. In response, Solomon asked "Why didn't those Jews just leave when things got bad?"
His father responded "They had nowhere to go."
"My notion of absolute safety at home crumbled then and there. I would leave before the walls closed around the ghetto, before the train tracks were completed, before teh borders were sealed. If genocide ever threatened midtown Manhattan, I would be all set to father up my passport and head to some place where they'd be glad to have me." (1-2).
It ends with brutal homophobia in Ghana, brutal homophobia and anti-Romani prejudice in Romania, and the Rohingya genocide in Myanmar. While the text does not make it explicit, Solomon's drive to travel -- to have a way to escape -- has not save hundreds of thousands of people who have died in my lifetime because they live in places where a critical mass of people and power do not want them.
Along the way we touch on murderous oppression in South Africa, a lovely safari in Zambia, a partially failed trip to Antarctica, and much much more.
I liked it. I'm impressed that so many of the pieces were written for travel and leisure magazines. But it always felt like the author was right at the verge of saying something deep and powerful about the world and our American place in it, and he never actually did.
His father responded "They had nowhere to go."
"My notion of absolute safety at home crumbled then and there. I would leave before the walls closed around the ghetto, before the train tracks were completed, before teh borders were sealed. If genocide ever threatened midtown Manhattan, I would be all set to father up my passport and head to some place where they'd be glad to have me." (1-2).
It ends with brutal homophobia in Ghana, brutal homophobia and anti-Romani prejudice in Romania, and the Rohingya genocide in Myanmar. While the text does not make it explicit, Solomon's drive to travel -- to have a way to escape -- has not save hundreds of thousands of people who have died in my lifetime because they live in places where a critical mass of people and power do not want them.
Along the way we touch on murderous oppression in South Africa, a lovely safari in Zambia, a partially failed trip to Antarctica, and much much more.
I liked it. I'm impressed that so many of the pieces were written for travel and leisure magazines. But it always felt like the author was right at the verge of saying something deep and powerful about the world and our American place in it, and he never actually did.
epictetsocrate's review against another edition
3.0
Când aveam vreo șapte ani, tata mi-a povestit despre Holocaust. Eram într-un Buick galben pe autostrada 9A din statul New York și il întrebasem dacă Pleasantville e, într-adevăr, un loc plăcut (pleasant). Nu știu cum a venit vorba de naziști câțiva kilometri mai târziu, dar îmi amintesc cum își făcuse impresia ca eu știu deja despre Soluția Finală, așa că nu avea un discurs pregătit despre lagărele de concentrare. Mi-a spus că oamenilor li se întâmplase asta pentru că erau evrei. Știam că și noi suntem evrei și am tras concluzia că, dacă am fi fost acolo în acea perioadă, am fi pățit același lucru. Am stăruit ca tata să-mi explice totul de cel puțin patru or fiindcă tot credeam că îmi scapă un fragment din poveste care ar fi făcut-o să capete sens. În cele din urma mi-a spus, cu o emfază care aproape a pus capăt conversației, că era vorba despre „răul pur". Însă mai aveam o întrebare:
-De ce n-au plecat evreii ăia când au văzut că lucrurile se înrăutățesc?
-N-aveau unde să se ducă, mi-a răspuns.
În acel moment, m-am hotărât că voi avea mereu unde să mă duc.
-De ce n-au plecat evreii ăia când au văzut că lucrurile se înrăutățesc?
-N-aveau unde să se ducă, mi-a răspuns.
În acel moment, m-am hotărât că voi avea mereu unde să mă duc.
lenni's review against another edition
3.0
I received a galley copy of this book from the publisher so anything I say can and will be used against me.
This book came into its own in terms of my interests about halfway through when Solomon moved beyond writing about art to more sociological, scientific, and political pieces. (Yes, I am aware that art, especially in the contexts that Solomon is writing about, IS sociological and political.) Other notes: I was unfamiliar with Solomon's work before starting this book and I only skipped one chapter (Outward Opulence for Inner Peace) that read like a museum display.
This book came into its own in terms of my interests about halfway through when Solomon moved beyond writing about art to more sociological, scientific, and political pieces. (Yes, I am aware that art, especially in the contexts that Solomon is writing about, IS sociological and political.) Other notes: I was unfamiliar with Solomon's work before starting this book and I only skipped one chapter (Outward Opulence for Inner Peace) that read like a museum display.
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