Ceremonial time is the moment when past, present, and future can be perceived simultaneously. Usually experienced only during ancient dances or rituals, this escape from time is the theme of this book, which traces the life on a single spot in New England from the last ice age through years of Indians, shamans, and bears, to the colonists, witches and farmers, and now the encroaching parks.
Ceremonial time is the moment when past, present, and future can be perceived simultaneously. Usually experienced only during ancient dances or ritual...
John Hanson Mitchell tells of his 1500 mile ride on a trusty old Peugeot bicycle from the port of Cadiz to just below the Arctic Circle. He follows the European spring up through southern Spain, the wine and oyster country near Bordeaux, to Versailles (the palace of the Sun King), Wordsworth's Lake District, precipitous Scottish highlands and finally to a Druid temple on the island of Lewis in the Hebrides, a place where Midsummer is celebrated in pagan majesty as the near-midnight sun dips and then quickly rises over the horizon.
John Hanson Mitchell tells of his 1500 mile ride on a trusty old Peugeot bicycle from the port of Cadiz to just below the Arctic Circle. He follows th...
The author of this book sets out on a journey to uncover the essence of wilderness. Instead of travelling to remote, untamed parts of the world, Mitchell ends up exploring the green realms of his childhood and the gardens of Italy. He is pulled inward and toward home, back to what Thoreau called contact - an abiding, enduring and daily connection with the world. He comes to realize that the wildest place may be right in his own backyard.
The author of this book sets out on a journey to uncover the essence of wilderness. Instead of travelling to remote, untamed parts of the world, Mitch...
In the isolated backcountry of Corsica in 1960, a young American writer brings to life a vibrant cast of characters in this coming-of-age memoir set during the pivotal days of Europe in transformation.
In the isolated backcountry of Corsica in 1960, a young American writer brings to life a vibrant cast of characters in this coming-of-age memoir set d...
How much does the current landscape of Boston, Massachusetts, resemble the place that Captain John Smith referred to in 1614 as the Paradise of all these parts? John Hanson Mitchell explores a variety of habitats as he ranges outward from the core of the peninsula where the Puritans first settled to the ancient rim of the Boston Basin, within which the modern city now lies. Endlessly readable and full of personality, The Paradise of All These Parts offers Boston visitors and residents alike a whole new perspective on one of America's oldest cities.
How much does the current landscape of Boston, Massachusetts, resemble the place that Captain John Smith referred to in 1614 as the Paradise of all th...
In 1928, Massachusetts water authorities began land takings for the construction of the Quabbin Reservoir, in the Swift River Valley. Unknown to the authorities was the fact that, subsisting in the more remote, forested tracts of the valley, there was a secretive band of mixed-race hunter-gatherers who had been there for over ten generations. Mitchell's book is the story of the exodus of this tribe and the young anthropologist who first discovers them. The novel takes the form of a legal deposition, taken at the Everglades City Court House, in 1929, concerning the fate of these people. John...
In 1928, Massachusetts water authorities began land takings for the construction of the Quabbin Reservoir, in the Swift River Valley. Unknown to the a...
"Ceremonial time" occurs when past, present, and future can be perceived simultaneously. Experienced only rarely, usually during ritual dance, this escape from linear time is the vehicle for John Mitchell's extraordinary writing. In this, his most magical book, he traces the life of a single square mile in New England, from the last ice age through years of human history, including bear shamans, colonists, witches, local farmers, and encroaching industrial "parks."
"Ceremonial time" occurs when past, present, and future can be perceived simultaneously. Experienced only rarely, usually during ritual dance, this es...
For many, the moon landing was the defining event of the twentieth century. So it seems only fitting that Norman Mailer the literary provocateur who altered the landscape of American nonfiction wrote the most wide-ranging, far-seeing chronicle of the Apollo 11 mission. A classic chronicle of America s reach for greatness in the midst of the Cold War, Of a Fire on the Moon compiles the reportage Mailer published between 1969 and 1970 in Life magazine: gripping firsthand dispatches from inside NASA s clandestine operations in Houston and Cape Kennedy; technical insights into the...
For many, the moon landing was the defining event of the twentieth century. So it seems only fitting that Norman Mailer the literary provocateur who a...
This is the ironic story of how Italian Renaissance and Baroque gardens encouraged the preservation of the American wilderness and ultimately fostered the creation of the world's first national park system. Told via Mitchell's sometimes disastrous and humorous travels--from the gardens of southern Italy up through Tuscany and the lake island gardens--the book is filled with history, folklore, myths, and legends of Western Europe, including a detailed history of the labyrinth, a common element in Renaissance gardens. In his attempt to understand the Italian garden in detail, Mitchell set out...
This is the ironic story of how Italian Renaissance and Baroque gardens encouraged the preservation of the American wilderness and ultimately fostered...
Author John Hanson Mitchell recounts a marathon bicycle trek from Andalusia to the Outer Hebrides, tracing solar myths, sun cults, birds, and flowering plants all along the way.
Author John Hanson Mitchell recounts a marathon bicycle trek from Andalusia to the Outer Hebrides, tracing solar myths, sun cults, birds, and flowerin...
