Word: mcpheeã
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...Silk Parachute,” John McPhee??s latest anthology of essays, is already a relic. A slender addendum to McPhee??s two previous collections of personal essays and literary journalism, this book evokes a rapidly fading epoch in which compendia of previously published works (not to mention books in general) could still turn a profit. Indeed, “Silk Parachute” often feels as though it was rushed to press too quickly. The highlight of the book, “Spin Right and Shoot Left,” which examines the history...
This isn’t as much of a problem as it sounds; if these pieces are less ambitious than McPhee??s books, they succeed as especially substantial and elegant nonfiction. This collection provides an enticing introduction to a body of work that can be intimidating by virtue of its sheer volume and journalistic rigor...
...eponymous essay, “Silk Parachute,” opens the collection. Despite being McPhee??s most anthologized piece, it mainly excels at its style, and its content is not as intellectually rich or complex as the later pieces. It serves as an adequate introduction to the book and establishes an introspective tone that will stand out to readers more accustomed to McPhee??s journalistic mode...
...whip the brats into shape. When the children refuse to get up in the morning, claiming they have the measles, Nanny McPhee actually gives the children measles for the day. Lesson learned—with Nanny McPhee, get up or get ill. After each lesson taught, one of Nanny McPhee??s physical flaws disappears. To enlarge the slim plot into a full-length movie, Thompson—who also wrote the script—throws in a half-baked storyline involving Mr. Brown’s financial and marital problems. When wealthy Great Aunt Adelaide (Angela Lansbury) tells...
...what was most striking about McPhee??s book was that the attention the author showered upon Bradley seemed justified. Rumors of the next great basketball star filled Princeton’s Dillon Gymnasium beyond capacity game after game when Bradley was a freshman, and McPhee wrote lustily of the “undergraduates who massed to praise Allah” after the star returned from dominating the NCAA Tournament. Bradley sold out Madison Square Garden and filled seats just for his warm-ups. And so on. Fan reaction suggested that McPhee??s investment of energies made...