These precious days : essays / Ann Patchett.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Patchett, Ann, author.

Standardized Title:

Essays. Selections

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Patchett, Ann.

Patchett, Ann--Books and reading.

Patchett, Ann--Authorship.

Creation (Literary, artistic, etc.).

Authors, American--20th century--Biography.

Authors, American.

Authorship.

Books and reading.

Women authors, American--Biography.

Women authors, American.

Genre:

Biographies.

Essays.

Autobiographies.

Physical Description:

viii, 322 pages : illustration ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, 2021.

Summary:

""Any story that starts will also end." As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart. At the center of These Precious Days is the title essay, a surprising and moving meditation on an unexpected friendship that explores "what it means to be seen, to find someone with whom you can be your best and most complete self." When Patchett chose an early galley of actor and producer Tom Hanks' short story collection to read one night before bed, she had no idea that this single choice would be life changing. It would introduce her to a remarkable woman--Tom's brilliant assistant Sooki--with whom she would form a profound bond that held monumental consequences for them both. A literary alchemist, Patchett plumbs the depths of her experiences to create gold: engaging and moving pieces that are both self-portrait and landscape, each vibrant with emotion and rich in insight. Turning her writer's eye on her own experiences, she transforms the private into the universal, providing us all a way to look at our own worlds anew, and reminds how fleeting and enigmatic life can be. From the enchantments of Kate DiCamillo's children's books to youthful memories of Paris; the cherished life gifts given by her three fathers to the unexpected influence of Charles Schultz's Snoopy; the expansive vision of Eudora Welty to the importance of knitting, Patchett connects life and art as she illuminates what matters most. Infused with the author's grace, wit, and warmth, the pieces in These Precious Days resonate deep in the soul, leaving an indelible mark--and demonstrate why Ann Patchett is one of the most celebrated writers of our time."--Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: Three Fathers

The First Thanksgiving

The Paris Tattoo

My Year of No Shopping

The Worthless Servant

How to Practice

To the Doghouse

Eudora Welty, an Introduction

Flight Plan

How Knitting Saved My Life. Twice

Tavia

There Are No Children Here

A Paper Ticket Is Good for One Year

The Moment Nothing Changed

The Nightstand

A Talk to the Association of Graduate School Deans in the Humanities

Cover Stories

Reading Kate DiCamillo

Sisters

These Precious Days

Two More Things I Want to Say about My Father

What the American Academy of Arts and Letters Taught Me about Death.

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Scott fund bookplate.

Contains:

Patchett, Ann. Three fathers.

Patchett, Ann. First Thanksgiving.

Patchett, Ann. Paris tattoo.

Patchett, Ann. My year of no shopping.

Patchett, Ann. Worthless servant.

Patchett, Ann. How to practice.

Patchett, Ann. To the doghouse.

Patchett, Ann. Eudora Welty, an introduction.

Patchett, Ann. Flight plan.

Patchett, Ann. How knitting saved my life. Twice.

Patchett, Ann. Tavia.

Patchett, Ann. There are no children here.

Patchett, Ann. Paper ticket is good for one year.

Patchett, Ann. Moment nothing changed.

Patchett, Ann. Nightstand.

Patchett, Ann. Talk to the Association of Graduate School Deans in the Humanities.

Patchett, Ann. Cover stories.

Patchett, Ann. Reading Kate DiCamillo.

Patchett, Ann. Sisters.

Patchett, Ann. These precious days.

Patchett, Ann. Two more things I want to say about my father.

Patchett, Ann. What the American Academy of Arts and Letters taught me about death.

ISBN:

9780063136847

0063136848

9780063092785

0063092786

OCLC:

1262750080