Roots and Branches Contemporary Essays by West Coast Writers

We don't have to choose between urban and rural life-styles, Edward Hoagland once wrote, because we can divide out time between the two; we do have to choose to be either easterners or westerners. But what separates the coasts besides three thousand miles of heartland? Roots and Branches helps answer this question by presenting a panoply of West Coast viewpoints. Compiled by Howard Junker from ZYZZYVA, the West Coast literary magazine, this book collects thirty-five recent essays by writers based in California, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. Often West Coast writers look to their roots--or pivotal experiences--elsewhere: Irma Wallem tells of first love in Oklahoma in the twenties; Blair Fuller recalls an early experiment with LSD; Paula Gunn Allen explores her Lebanese heritage in New Mexico. West Coast writers also pursue new directions as varied as their roots: John Haines writes about 'mudding up' his homestead in Alaska; David Harris tells of doing time as a war resister; others offer fresh perspectives on architecture, poetry and the natural world. Roots and Branches celebrates the vitality and diversity of West Coast writing.