Touchstone Anthology of Contemporary Creative Nonfiction: Work from 1970 to the Present by Lex WillifordMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
"The poet presents his thoughts festively, on the carriage of rhythm: usually because they could not walk." - The Portable Nietzsche
It appears from the bios that "Creative Nonfiction" means poets writing elliptically about the saddest and darkest of topics: death, mental and neurological disorders, a pederast father, an assaulting pet, the after effects of promiscuity (Cheryl Strayed) and more. That certainly covers the bulk of the book. Toward the end, there are some exceptions like John McPhee seeking the "Marvin Gardens" from Monopoly. Don't get me wrong. This is affecting, moving material. Just apparently, at least to this editor, there is not much room for joy in contemporary creative nonfiction. Also, I keep hearing great things about David Foster Wallace, but his reportage of a Maine lobster festival dwelling on crustacean nociception left me "meh".
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