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Dreamers, Runaways, and Mysteries: A Traveler's Tales and Essays
Dreamers, Runaways, and Mysteries takes readers to many places around the world, some enfolded in mystery.
The tales tell of characters drawn to these places, sometimes for escape from the lives they had led, and of incidents that memorably mark their travels. In India, an intrepid lady adventurer charms an unhappy American; in Buenos Aires, a lonely tourist gets enraptured by a torrid story of tango dancers; in Botswana, a safari takes a surprising twist under an astonishing guide; in Singapore, fantasies of Somerset Maugham bewitch a yearning visitor; in Rio de Janiero, a buoyant lady of the night beguiles a disaffected businessman; in Saigon, a nostalgic journalist hears surprising secrets from a gentle Laotian. And many more.
The essays share the tales' spirit of travel and sense of place as they plumb historical mysteries of Sagres, Portugal, where the great age of exploration began; Shanghai, China, where past and present compete; Khajuraho, India, where erotic temple art flowered; and Marrakech, Morocco, where storytellers thrive in the marketplace.
In all, Dreamers, Runaways, and Mysteries celebrates the life-giving experience of travel and the unexpected turns this experience can take when we let it.
The tales tell of characters drawn to these places, sometimes for escape from the lives they had led, and of incidents that memorably mark their travels. In India, an intrepid lady adventurer charms an unhappy American; in Buenos Aires, a lonely tourist gets enraptured by a torrid story of tango dancers; in Botswana, a safari takes a surprising twist under an astonishing guide; in Singapore, fantasies of Somerset Maugham bewitch a yearning visitor; in Rio de Janiero, a buoyant lady of the night beguiles a disaffected businessman; in Saigon, a nostalgic journalist hears surprising secrets from a gentle Laotian. And many more.
The essays share the tales' spirit of travel and sense of place as they plumb historical mysteries of Sagres, Portugal, where the great age of exploration began; Shanghai, China, where past and present compete; Khajuraho, India, where erotic temple art flowered; and Marrakech, Morocco, where storytellers thrive in the marketplace.
In all, Dreamers, Runaways, and Mysteries celebrates the life-giving experience of travel and the unexpected turns this experience can take when we let it.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 10, 2020
About the author
James Sloan Allen
9 books3 followersJames Sloan Allen is the author of Worldly Wisdom, Great Books and the Meaning of Life, as well as The Romance of Commerce and Culture.
A cultural historian, essayist, and critic, he received his doctorate from Columbia University. He has taught at Columbia, Haverford College, Brigham Young University, the New School, and the Juillard School, where he was academic vice president. For several years he has been teaching a Great Books class for adults in New York City. A longtime New Yorker, he now resides with his wife in Honolulu and Philadelphia.
A cultural historian, essayist, and critic, he received his doctorate from Columbia University. He has taught at Columbia, Haverford College, Brigham Young University, the New School, and the Juillard School, where he was academic vice president. For several years he has been teaching a Great Books class for adults in New York City. A longtime New Yorker, he now resides with his wife in Honolulu and Philadelphia.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 3, 2021
James Sloan Allen writes excellent works for their intrinsic value. It is an endeavor that I admire immensely. If there is a publisher interested, great. If not, he works with a book designer and produces a print version on his own. Dreamers is an example.
Jim is a cultural historian with a PhD from Columbia who after living most of his adult life in New York City, moved to Honolulu after 9-11. I have had the pleasure of dining with him from time to time. Have you seen "My Dinner with Andre?" Jim is like Andre, transporting in his tales of travel and intrigue, thick with insight and humor. Dreamers, Runaways, and Mysteries: A Traveler's Tales and Essays is like that. Reading this work is like dinner with Jim for the mere price of a book.
Jim is a cultural historian with a PhD from Columbia who after living most of his adult life in New York City, moved to Honolulu after 9-11. I have had the pleasure of dining with him from time to time. Have you seen "My Dinner with Andre?" Jim is like Andre, transporting in his tales of travel and intrigue, thick with insight and humor. Dreamers, Runaways, and Mysteries: A Traveler's Tales and Essays is like that. Reading this work is like dinner with Jim for the mere price of a book.
Displaying 1 of 1 review