Synopses & Reviews
Since the publication of his first book, Mississippi Solo, Eddy L. Harris has been praised for his travel writing. In this exciting reissue of his classic travelogue, readers will come to treasure the rich insightful prose that is as textured as the Mississippi River itself. They will be taken by the hand by an adventurer whose lifelong dream is to canoe the length of this mighty river, from Minnesota to New Orleans. The trip's dangers were legion for a Black man traveling alone, paddling from "where there ain't no black folks to where they still don't like us much." Barge waives loom large, wild dogs roam the wooded shores, and, in the Arkansas dusk, two shotgun-toting bigots nearly bring the author's dream to a bloody . Sustaining him through the hard weeks of paddling were the hundreds of people who reached out to share a small piece of his challenge. Mississippi Solo is a big, rollicking, brilliant book, a wonderful piece of American adventure, and an unforgettable story of a man testing his own limits.
Eddy L. Harris, author of Mississippi Solo, Native Stranger, South of Haunted Dreams, and Still Life in Harlem, has generated the kind of notice and praise that attends the rise of only the finest talents. As America's premier African-American memoirist and travel writer, he has written with emotional depth and courage about the Mississippi River, Africa, the South, and Harlem respectively in these books. A graduate of Stanford University, he has also studied in London and has been a screenwriter and journalist. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri. Mississippi Solo is the book that launched the career of America's premier African American memoirist and travel writer. It is the true story of a young black man's quest: to canoe the length of the Mississippi River from Minnesota to New Orleans. The trip's dangers were legion for a black man traveling alone, paddling from (as a friend put it) "where there ain't no black folks to where they still don't like us much." He encounters barge wakes, wild dogs, and two shotgun-toting bigots who nearly end his life in the calm of an Arkansas dusk. Equally significant were the people who reached out to Harris and shared in his adventure. A towboat captain who begins by talking of "niggers" ultimately welcomes Harris as a friend. And from bridges and shorelines comes waves of encouragement as Harris tells onlookers he's "headed for New Orleans." "A wonderful bookand a highly original contribution to the literature of travel."Paul Theroux "In his mastery of language, glinting irony, poetic prose, and uncanny powers of observation, Eddy L. Harris is the equal of Paul Theroux and Bruce Chatwin."Publishers Weekly
Review
"A wonderful book--and a highly original contribution to the literature of travel." --Paul Theroux"
In his mastery of language, glinting irony, poetic prose, and uncanny powers of observation, Eddy L. Harris is the equal of Paul Theroux and Bruce Chatwin."--Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
Since the publication of his first book, Mississippi Solo, Eddy L. Harris has been praised for his travel writing. In this exciting reissue of his classic travelogue, readers will come to treasure the rich insightful prose that is as textured as the Mississippi River itself. They will be taken by the hand by an adventurer whose lifelong dream is to canoe the length of this mighty river, from Minnesota to New Orleans. The trip's dangers were legion for a Black man traveling alone, paddling from "where there ain't no black folks to where they still don't like us much." Barge waives loom large, wild dogs roam the wooded shores, and, in the Arkansas dusk, two shotgun-toting bigots nearly bring the author's dream to a bloody . Sustaining him through the hard weeks of paddling were the hundreds of people who reached out to share a small piece of his challenge. Mississippi Solo is a big, rollicking, brilliant book, a wonderful piece of American adventure, and an unforgettable story of a man testing his own limits.
About the Author
Eddy L. Harris is the author of three critically acclaimed books,
Native Stranger, South of Haunted Dreams, and
Still Life in Harlem, a
New York Times Book Review notable book of 1997. A graduate of Stanford University, he teaches at Washington University in Missouri.