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These Precious Days: Essays Hardcover – Deckle Edge, November 23, 2021
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The beloved New York Times bestselling author reflects on home, family, friendships and writing in this deeply personal collection of essays.
"The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike." —Publisher's Weekly
“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 (author of The Beatryce Prophecy) 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.
- Print length320 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHarper
- Publication dateNovember 23, 2021
- Dimensions6 x 1.05 x 9 inches
- ISBN-100063092786
- ISBN-13978-0063092785
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From the Publisher
THESE PRECIOUS DAYS | STATE OF WONDER | TAFT | THE PATRON SAINT OF LIARS | TRUTH & BEAUTY | THE MAGICIAN’S ASSISTANT | |
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4.7 out of 5 stars
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Price | $12.44$12.44 | $13.61$13.61 | $11.49$11.49 | $6.99$6.99 | $10.89$10.89 | $9.99$9.99 |
THE DUTCH HOUSE | BEL CANTO | THIS IS THE STORY OF A HAPPY MARRIAGE | COMMONWEALTH | RUN | |
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4.4 out of 5 stars
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4.3 out of 5 stars
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Price | $11.74$11.74 | $11.59$11.59 | $11.39$11.39 | $9.99$9.99 | $10.96$10.96 |
Editorial Reviews
Review
"To read this collection is to be invited into that sacred space where a writer steps out from behind the page to say Hello; let’s really get to know each other. Stoic, kindhearted, fierce, funny, brainy, Patchett’s essays honor what matters most 'in this precarious and precious life.'" — Oprah Daily
"The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Patchett’s heart, smarts and 40 years of craft create an economy that delivers her perfectly understated stories emotionally whole. Her writing style is most gloriously her own." — New York Times Book Review
"Generous in spirit, animated by a positive outlook and someone who obviously relishes life." — People
“Ann Patchett is, above all, marvelous company.” — San Francisco Chronicle
"Patchett’s voice, equal parts, warm, wry and insightful, reels you in. There’s a freshness, an openness that never gets near over-sharing—and a humanity that never gets near sanctimony." — Wall Street Journal
“A beautiful reminder of what’s important. . . . There’s a generosity in the way she not only looks at the world but invites the reader in to stay for a while.” — Washington Post
"An enviable life shared with candor, emotion, and knockout storytelling power." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Witty and warm, the essays succeed because of Patchett’s inimitable, endearing voice. Simplistic, generous without being cloying, accessible rather than anodyne, These Precious Days feels at once bracing and comforting." — Boston Globe
"A moving and memorable account of a brief but incandescent friendship." — USA Today (four stars)
"A catalogue of all the unexpected ways love can look, if you're imaginative and brave enough to try it — even while knowing that love and grief are two sides of the same coin." — NPR.org
"The mission of memoir is to bring back, at least on the page, lost loved ones, times past and places left behind, and Patchett brings to this reclamation project the abundant literary gifts that light up her nine novels. To that artisanship is added the electricity that only true stories have, the hot current of personal revelation and intimacy." — Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Splendid. . . . These Precious Days overflows with life. . . . It’s warm and funny and smart and full of unexpected insights.” — Tampa Bay Times
“Essential reading. . . . These Precious Days is a book to treasure.” — Toronto Star
“To immerse oneself in her book is to see the world as she does, in all its wonder and beauty. Read it, cherish it, buy a copy for your best friend, then read it once more.” — Inews
“An illuminating, engaging collection. . . . These essays are at once a timely reminder that the days are precious—and a how-to guide for making them so.” — Irish Times
"In this collection, readers will find humor, optimism, abundant joy and acceptance of loss, along with moments of laughter sprinkled with tears. Death is inevitable for all, so celebrate the precious moments with a sense of adventure, good books and great conversations with family and friends." — Booktrib
About the Author
Ann Patchett is the author of novels, most recently the #1 New York Times bestselling Tom Lake, works of nonfiction, and children's books. She has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the PEN/Faulkner, the Women's Prize in the UK, and the Book Sense Book of the Year. Her novel The Dutch House was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Her work has been translated into more than thirty languages, and Time magazine named her one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. President Biden awarded her the National Humanities Medal in recognition of her contributions to American culture. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee, where she is the owner of Parnassus Books.
Product details
- Publisher : Harper; First Ed edition (November 23, 2021)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 320 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0063092786
- ISBN-13 : 978-0063092785
- Item Weight : 1.05 pounds
- Dimensions : 6 x 1.05 x 9 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #34,765 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #81 in Essays (Books)
- #129 in Author Biographies
- #448 in Women's Biographies
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Ann Patchett is the author of six novels, including Bel Canto, which won the Orange Prize for Fiction. She writes for the New York Times Magazine, Elle, GQ, the Financial Times, the Paris Review and Vogue. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
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Top reviews from the United States
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She starts with the semi-hilarious tale of her three fathers, her birth father and her mother's two subsequent husbands. While her own father actively discouraged her pursuit of a career in writing, her stepfather, a very successful surgeon, envied her choice - not to mention her success. She tells delicious stories of the many bad novels which he churned out, some of which she had to sell (if not tout) in her Nashville bookstore - even though they were uniformly dreadful.
Her Covid story has a great twist, with a guest of a few days becoming the third member of her household, staying for months while bringing all sorts of new factors into the household, almost all of them surprisingly good.
Some of the essays are but a few pages, the Covid tale is almost a novella. Her graceful prose is always a pleasure to read; her writing is fluid and elegant, like an excellent wine. (She likes wine.) I feel almost like I know her from the frank tales of her domestic life, even though we have, of course, never met.
During these busy holiday times, it was great to be able to pick up and put down this collection, so much easier to manage than an epic novel like LINCOLN HIGHWAY, my last venture. But a treat nonetheless.
Top reviews from other countries
Reviewed in France on August 14, 2022
I immediately ordered it from Amazon and now Ann is the newest friend I have, but also the oldest, as because she is selfless in her descriptions of her life events, I feel I have known her forever.
It is also a little encyclopaedia of cross Atlantic knowledge, she being American and myself being English. Thank goodness for my iPad with ever helpful dictionaries. Please read this very engaging work.