The Art of the Wasted Day Book by Patricia Hampl
By Patricia HamplThe Art of the Wasted Day Book by Patricia Hampl
A spirited inquiry into the lost value of leisure and daydream
The Art of the Wasted Day is a picaresque travelogue of leisure written from a lifelong enchantment with solitude. Patricia Hampl visits the homes of historic exemplars of ease who made repose a goal, even an art form. She begins with two celebrated eighteenth-century Irish ladies who ran off to live a life of "retirement" in rural Wales. Her search then leads to Moravia to consider the monk-geneticist, Gregor Mendel, and finally to Bordeaux for Michel Montaigne—the hero of this book—who retreated from court life to sit in his chateau tower and write about whatever passed through his mind, thus inventing the personal essay.
Hampl's own life winds through these pilgrimages, from childhood days lazing under a neighbor's beechnut tree, to a fascination with monastic life, and then to love—and the loss of that love which forms this book's silver thread of inquiry. Finally, a remembered journey down the Mississippi near home in an old cabin cruiser with her husband turns out, after all her international quests, to be the great adventure of her life.
The real job of being human, Hampl finds, is getting lost in thought, something only leisure can provide. The Art of the Wasted Day is a compelling celebration of the purpose and appeal of letting go.
Book details
- Hardcover
- 288 pages
- English
- 0525429646
- 9780525429647
About Patricia Hampl
patricia hampl is the author of six prose works, including a romantic education and, most recently, the florist's daughter. her work has appeared in many p Read More about Patricia Hampl
More Books By Patricia Hampl
People who bought this also bought
What They Can't Teach You at Harvard Business School book by Mark H. McCormack
New Book
Come to Me: Biblical Mothers with Contemporary Problems book by Anne Jordan-Hoad
Used Book
Joy Breaks: 90 Devotions to Celebrate, Simplify, and Add Laughter to Your Life by Patsy Clairmont
Used Book
I'm Alive and the Doctor's Dead : Surviving Cancer with Your Sense of Humor and Your Sexuality Intact
Used Book
The Meritocracy Trap: How America's Foundational Myth Feeds Inequality, Dismantles the Middle Class, and Devours the Elite book by Daniel Markovits
New Book
Sew It! : Make 17 Projects with Yummy Precut Fabric?Jelly Rolls, Layer Cakes, Charm Packs AND Fat Quarters
Used Book
Sincerely Yours : Discovering the Treasures of God's Written Word : Volume Two-The Gospel of Mark
Used Book
The Interpretation of Financial Statements book by Benjamin Graham
New Book
Come and See: A Photojournalist's Journey Into the World of Mother Teresa
Used Book
Ishi's Brain: In Search of America's Last Wild Indian book by Orin Starn
Used Book
The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin book by Masha Gessen
New Book
Women Who Run With The Wolves : Contacting the Power of the Wild Woman by Clarissa Pinkola Est?s
New Book
Better Homes and Gardens Pressure Cooker Cookbook
Used Book
This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War book by Drew Gilpin Faust
Used Book
The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are
New Book
Running with the Kenyans: Passion, Adventure, and the Secrets of the Fastest People on Earth book by Adharanand Finn
New Book