Mapping the Territory
Selected Nonfiction
by Christopher Bram
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Pub. Ed. $23.95
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Mapping the Territory
Christopher Bram was hailed as “one of the best novelists writing in the world today,” by Tony Kushner, but he has also been writing personal essays for over 25 years. In Mapping the Territory, his first-ever collection of nonfiction, Bram meditates on a diverse and fascinating range of subjects, from the trials and travails of coming out in Virginia in the 1970s to the power and influence of gay fiction, the thrill of making low-budget films with friends in New York, and the wonders of Henry James’ rabidly sexual imagination.
He talks candidly about the surreal experience of watching his celebrated novel Gods and Monsters become a critically acclaimed, Oscar-winning film and explains why he and his partner of 30 years have absolutely no plans on getting married any time soon. In these essays, Bram looks both inward and outward, lovingly describing the view of Greenwich Village from his stoop and speaking candidly about his self-discoveries as a gay man with equal aplomb. This book is much more than a collection of short pieces; it’s a complex mosaic of ideas, themes and revelations from one of today’s most exciting and beloved storytellers.
Hardcover: 272 pages
Publisher: Alyson Books ( September 01, 2009 )
Item #: 44-3769
ISBN: 9781615235018
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.25 x 0.625 inches
Product Weight: 13.0 ounces
Most Excellent Writer
June 29, 2010
Christopher Bram is a brilliant writer. I knew this from his novels that I have enjoyed. It was interesting to get a glimpse into his psyche and read his opinions on a variety of topics. Mostly I enjoyed the autobiographical essays. His appreciation for literature is inspiring as he obviously is well read and thinks about what he reads carefully. I found his essays on "straight male literature" and "Henry James" a bit tedious and boring. This is not because he's not a interesting writer but those topics don't personally interest me, so I'm still giving this book 5 stars.
Reviewer: Don C
Poetic Essays by Literary Master
December 02, 2009
Christopher Bram is such a gifted story teller that it would stand to reason that his ramblings about his own life and about such varied topics as Henry James, adolescent problems of deciding sexuality, the effect of AIDS on literature, gossip novels, etc. would be rich in anecdotes and humor and philosophy. But even appreciation of his depth of literary skills does not provide the reader of MAPPING THE TERRITORY with an adequate clue as to just how fine Bram writes essays such as these.
Much of the book falls into the autobiographical zone: 'Slow Learners' is an extended 'novella' of Bram's highschool, college, and grad school days as they molded his preference for friends in general and life partners in particular - an at times hilarious tale and at times tender and supportive guide to figuring out life as a young man. He also offers a rich essay on the books that influenced his own writing, books he reviews for the reader in a way that few other reviewers can. He shares his views of life in the Village in New York, revisits Larry Kramer's notorious novel 'Faggots', and delves into Oscar Wilde with a penchant for wit and concrete criticism.
Woven throughout this endlessly entertaining book is Christopher Bram's elegant use of the English language. Reading this collection adds to his stature as one of America's finest writers. And he seems like a guy you'd like to have over to dinner! Communication, elucidation, and warmth suffuse these pages as only Christopher Bram could write.
Grady Harp
Reviewer: Grady H
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