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At Large and At Small: Familiar Essays
by Anne Fadiman

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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/108743.At_Large_and_At_Small_Familiar_Essays?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="At Large and At Small: Familiar Essays" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1171591149m/108743.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/108743.At_Large_and_At_Small_Familiar_Essays?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">At Large and At Small: Familiar Essays</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7982.Anne_Fadiman">Anne Fadiman</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5662130?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 4 of 5 stars<br/>I am giving this four out of five stars because 4/5 of the essays deserve 5 stars, if that makes sense. I highly recommend this selection of incredibly intelligent, interesting, and honest essays on a variety of eccentric topics. The first essay, in particular, which describes Ms. Fadiman's childhood obsession with collecting things from nature, including butterflies, is just stunning (lots of interesting references to Nabakov and lepidoptery). I also loved the essays on Charles Lambs' essays (meta-Lamb?), ice cream (she actually includes a recipe for Liquid Nitrogen chilled ice cream), and, especially, artic exploration. I've always been obsessed with the early artic and antartic explorers - how lovely to learn that I am not alone in this particular brand of nerdiness! I just wish my naturalist/explorer friend Marc had lived to read this book - he would have loved several of these essays. At times, it seems almost to be written with him in mind.
<br/>
<br/>I already bought Ex Libris, which I have heard is even better. Is this possible? What a treat.
  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/250817?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Inder's review
rating:
bookshelves: memoir, personalessays, read-2007

I am giving this four out of five stars because 4/5 of the essays deserve 5 stars, if that makes sense. I highly recommend this selection of incredibly intelligent, interesting, and honest essays on a variety of eccentric topics. The first essay, in particular, which describes Ms. Fadiman's childhood obsession with collecting things from nature, including butterflies, is just stunning (lots of interesting references to Nabakov and lepidoptery). I also loved the essays on Charles Lambs' essays (meta-Lamb?), ice cream (she actually includes a recipe for Liquid Nitrogen chilled ice cream), and, especially, artic exploration. I've always been obsessed with the early artic and antartic explorers - how lovely to learn that I am not alone in this particular brand of nerdiness! I just wish my naturalist/explorer friend Marc had lived to read this book - he would have loved several of these essays. At times, it seems almost to be written with him in mind.

I already bought Ex Libris, which I ...more

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