What We Are Reading At Bunnyshop HQ

We’ve been reading this book for only slightly less time than we spent reading Malcolm Lowry’s Under the Volcano (about five years). (Which, by the way, we highly recommend!) We’re a massive John McPhee fan, not least because he’s always writing about the most random things, like one, particular tennis match (Levels of the Game); the Swiss Army (La Place de la Concorde Suisse); or the Pine Barrens (The Pine Barrens). Who wouldn’t love a writer who dedicates an entire book to the Swiss Army? He is honestly just the most perfect, precise writer—it’s like a class in how to write non-fiction.

The one problem with this book, which is a series of essays investigating Alaska, is that it was published in 1977, so many of the hot-button debates in the book have been resolved, which undermines some of the book’s tension. (Message to 1977: Nobody actually ends up moving the capital out of Juneau—the debate takes up a significant portion of the book.) But even in that case, there are just so many interesting little asides—about the history of various state capitals, in that case—that it’s worth reading just for the ancillary stuff. If you like Bill Bryson … it’s definitely not a perfect comparison; Bryson is way funnier, and McPhee is more reserved. But they’re both amazing. And like we said, if you’ve ever wondered how to write the perfect New Yorker essay, there’s few better places to start than here.

Coming Into the Country by John McPhee, $11.56