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Psychogeography: Disentangling the Modern Conundrum of Psyche and Placeby Will Self
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:For those interested in the connection between people and place, the best of the decade long collaboration between literary brat packer Will Self and gonzo illustrator Ralph Steadman. Opening with a dazzling new 20,000-word essay on walking from London to New York, Psychogeography is a collection of 50 short pieces written over the last four years, together with 50 four-color illustrations by Ralph Steadman. In Psychogeography Self and Steadman explore the relationship between psyche and place in the contemporary world. Self thinks most people have a “wind-screen-based virtuality” on long- and short-distance travel. We drive, take buses and trains, fly. To combat this compromised reality, Will Self walks, relating intimately to place, as pedestrians do. Ranging in subject from swimming the Ganges to motorcycling across the Australian outback, shopping in an Iowa mall to surfing a tsunami, Psychogeography is at once a map of our world and the psychoanalysis of the way we inhabit it. The pieces are serious, humorous, facetious, and rambunctious. Psychogeography, the study of the effects of geographical environment on the emotions and behavior of individuals, has captivated other writers including W. G. Sebald and Peter Ackroyd, but Self and Steadman have their own unique spin on how place shapes people and vice versa. Review:"This artful and entertaining collection of essays by novelist Self (The Book of Dave) will delight anyone who enjoys his weekly column of the same name in the Independent or his last collection of essays, Feeding Frenzy. Here Self shifts from gonzo journalism to the study of psychogeography, the study of how geographical environments affect emotions and behavior. Setting off on a quest for the 'intrinsic character' of various places as well as 'the manner in which the contemporary world warps the relationship between psyche and place,' Self casts a dismissive eye on most of the world. Singapore strikes him 'as Basingstoke force-fed with pituitary gland'; Sao Paolo's lack of a street plan makes it 'an unholy miscegenation between London and Los Angeles.' But Steadman's beautifully harsh illustrations (worthy of their own book) and 'Walking to New York,' a previously unpublished semi-autobiographical meditation on life and death, reveal a surprising depth to Self's cynical insights." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Review:"Self reveals a profound truth about place and our contemporary psyche . . . Steadman's illustrations dazzle in their imagination, wit and fancy."Los Angeles Times About the AuthorWill Self is the acclaimed author of such books as The Quantity Theory of Insanity, Great Apes, How the Dead Live, and The Book of Dave. He won the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize and was short listed for the Whitbread. He lives in London. Ralph Steadman is an award-winning cartoonist and illustrator. Renowned as a political and social satirist, he has collaborated with Hunter S. Thompson, illustrated classics such as Alice in Wonderland, Treasure Island, and Animal Farm, and published his own books, including Doodaaa and the memoir, The Jokes Over. They both live in London. What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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