Nearer : Essays

In this collection of 25 essays, Saltzman (English, Missouri Southern State U.) offers reflections on wide-ranging topics. The title essay offers a perspective on parental love inspired by the hero of the 1957 science fiction film The Incredible Shrinking Man. Three of the essays, "Getting Known," "My Animal Instincts," and "In So Many Words" have been named Notable Essays in the Best American Essays series. In addition to six critical studies of literature and writers, Saltzman has published another collection of essays Objects and Empathy (2001), which won the First Series Creative Nonfiction Award. Annotation 2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)