{"product_id":"compass-points-how-i-lived-9780375702402","title":"Compass Points: How I Lived","description":"In a luminous memoir of a life richly lived, one of America's finest writers explores the themes that have shaped his life and work: the glories of the natural world, the lure of working for a circus and fighting forest fires, the afflictions of temporary blindness and blocked speech, and the enduring influence of literary friendships, including John Berryman's, Edward Abbey's, and his mentor, Archibald MacLeish. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFrom his childhood in rural Connecticut to some of the earth's last remaining wildernesses, Hoagland has traveled the world wielding his unusual gift for observation. In\u003cb\u003e Compass Points\u003c\/b\u003e he delivers an honest and lively accounting of his voyages through two marriages; the New York parties he attended as a precocious young writer; Vermont hippiedom and academia; his many vivid sojourns into Europe, Alaska, British Columbia, the Sudan; and, perhaps most unforgettably, his stint in the \"Animal Department\" of Ringling Bros. and Barnum \u0026amp; Bailey Circus fifty years ago. Leavened with Hoagland's trademark humor and insight, \u003cb\u003eCompass Points\u003c\/b\u003e is an entertaining and moving account of the days and nights of one of our most eminent literary voices.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEdward Hoagland has written many works of fiction and nonfiction and been nominated for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the American Book Award. He lives in Bennington, Vermont.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Vintage","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52103657849106,"sku":"9780375702402","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_2f442995-d3b4-4cbd-a031-f6e1088b2e71.jpg?v=1773151908","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/compass-points-how-i-lived-9780375702402","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}