Essays of E. B. White (Perennial Classics)

writes Elwyn Brooks White, probably familiar to most people as the author of Charlotte's Web. This collection contains 31 essays that "cover a long expanse of time, a wide variety of subjects" divided into seven categories: The Farm; The Planet; The City; Florida; Memories; Diversions and Obsessions; and Books, Men, and Writing.White impresses me most with his ability to entertain and inform readers on wide-ranging subjects. He seems as comfortable (and skilled) at writing about serious topics like: segregation (On a Florida Key-1941), "And I felt there were too many people in the world who think liberty and justice for all means liberty and justice for themselves and their friends;" the separation of church and state (Bedfellows-1956), "...I don't think a president should advertise prayer;" environmentalism (Sootfall and Fallout-1956), "I believe that no chemical waste is the correct amount to discharge into the rivers of the world...;"and disarmament (Unity-1960) "Total disarmament would not leave anyone free of the threat of war, it would simply leave everyone temporarily without the help of arms in the event of war;" as he is sharing his insight on less serious subjects, such as: the difficulty with giving up sentimental stuff (Goodbye to Forty-eighth Street-1957), "Trophies are like leeches. The ones made of paper, such as a diploma from school or a college, can be burned if you have the guts to light the match, but the ones made of bronze not only are indestructible but are almost impossible to throw away...;" his well-missed dachshund (Bedfellows), "Whenever the bed was occupied during the daylight hours...Fred would appear at the doorway and enter without knocking. On his big gray face would be a look of quiet amusement (at having caught somebody in bed during the daytime) coupled with his look of fake respectability;" the fate of a sick pig (Death of a Pig-1947), "Never send to know for whom the grave is dug, I said to myself, it's dug for thee;" an unconventional family of geese (The Geese-1971), "...geese are friends with no one, the badmouth everybody and everything;" and a nostalgic, return trip to a favorite boyhood destination with his son (Once More to the Lake-1941), "Summertime, oh, summertime, pattern of life indelible, the fade-proof lake, the woods unshatterable, the pasture with the sweetfern and the juniper forever and ever, summer without end."He also has great stuff to say about those whose works he admires, for example: (Will Strunk-1957), "A book I have decided not to get rid of is a small one...The Elements of Style, by the late William Strunk, Jr....Am delighted to study it again and rediscover its rich deposits of gold;" an ornithologist (Mr. Forbush's Friends), "If Edward Howe Forbush's prose is occasionally overblown, this results from a genuine ecstacy in the man, rather than a lack of discipline;" and Thoreau (A Slight Sound at Evening-1954), "Hairshirt or no, he is a better companion than most, and I would not swap him for a soberer or more reasonable friend even if I could." Other eclectic topics include: everything you ever wanted to know about the Model T (Farewell, My Lovely!-circa 1936), an eventful trip by ship to Alaska after being relieved of his job as a Seattle Times reporter (The Years of Wonder-1961), and the evolution of the railroad system in Maine (The Railroad-1960). Besides the fact that it contains some of the best essays of all time, the book's foreword provides insight into the authors' views on the genre and its writers, "The essayist is a self-liberated man, sustained by the childish believe that everything he thinks about, everything that happens to him, is of general interest," and the post essay section, entitled About E.B. White, includes an excellent chronology of major events in the man's life and writing career. Also good: The Painted Veil by Somerset Maughan, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.

Most folks will know E.B. White as the author of Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little, or as the eminently practical voice of reason in The Elements of Style. However, White was also an accomplished essayist, turning out pieces for The New Yorker and Harpers on a regular basis for many years.What I like about White's essays is that they can be counted on to be insightful, amusing and well-written. White approaches an essay like a pleasant conversation. He's been thinking about New York and its inhabitants, he will tell you, and this what he's come up with. On another occasion it may be the personality quirks of his old dachshund Fred, or the controversy over white versus brown eggs. Anything and everything is food for thought, although you can be sure that White will broaden the scope of his topics to include the world at large. New York, he concludes, is a concentrated version of many worlds, "...bringing to a single arena the gladiator, the evangelist, the promoter, the actor, the trader, and the merchant." Fred, the dachshund, was "...the Cecil B. deMille of dogs. He was a zealot, and I have just been reminded of him by a quote from one of the Democrats..." And the white versus brown egg debate, White concludes, is simply a matter of what you're used to. Personally he prefers brown, and can recommend the egg of the Silver Cross, whose egg is "...so richly brown, so wondrously beautiful as to defy description."Best of all, White's insightful commentary does not require intense concentration or endless analysis to get the gist of what he is trying to say. You can sit back and relax when you pick up a book of his essays, knowing you won't have to grapple with unfamiliar or awkward language. This is not to imply that you won't find yourself thinking about what he has to say. It's just that his approach is so matter-of- fact, easy going and accessible that you feel you've been invited to tea or are taking a leisurely stroll as the essay unfolds. I read White's essays the way some people read mysteries or romance novels. They are entertaining without being too demanding, and are a great way to set day-to-day concerns aside. Treat yourself to a good read.