"A follow up to Pico Iyer's essay 'The Joy of Quiet, ' The Art of Stillness considers the unexpected adventure of staying put and reveals a counterintuitive truth: The more ways we have to connect, the more we seem desperate to unplug. Why would a man who seems able to go everywhere and do anything--like the international heartthrob and Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Famer Leonard Cohen--choose to spend years sitting still and going nowhere? What can Nowhere...

When Pico Iyer decided to go to Kyoto and live in a monastery, he did so to learn about Zen Buddhism from the inside, to get to know Kyoto, one of the loveliest old cities in the world, and to find out something about Japanese culture today—not the world of businessmen and production lines, but the traditional world of changing seasons and the silence of temples, of the images woven through literature, of the lunar Japan that still lives on behind...

Witty, warm, unerringly perceptive, Pico Iyer possesses a knack for seeing things that others don't. "Tropical Classic" is a bumper collection of essays and articles by the author of "Video Night in Kathmandu" which covers an extraordinary range of Iyer's interests and adventures--a splendid package for Iyer fans, present and future

"After thirty-two years in Japan, Pico Iyer can use everything from anime to Oscar Wilde to show how his adopted home is both hauntingly familiar and the strangest place on earth. "Arguably the world's greatest living travel writer" (Outside). He draws on readings, reflections, and conversations with Japanese friends to illuminate an unknown place for newcomers, and to give longtime residents a look at their home through fresh eyes. A Beginner's Guide...

"From one of our most astute observers of human nature, a far-reaching exploration of Japanese history and culture and a moving meditation on impermanence, mortality, and grief. For years, Pico Iyer has split his time between California and Nara, Japan, where he and his Japanese wife Hiroko have a small home. But when his father-in-law dies suddenly, calling him back to Japan earlier than expected, Iyer begins to grapple with the question we all have...

"Destroying books has traditionally been seen as a brutal, almost inhumane, act. Is it possible that instead, book destruction can be turned into beautiful and inspiring works of art? That's the premise behind a new book from distinguished designer and photographer, Julius Friedman. Titled simply, The Book, Friedman's latest project is an art book made possible by the sacrifice of several other beautiful books for the pieces within. "The Book project...

"An anthology of original reflections on Henry David Thoreau's life and work"-- "From twenty-seven of today's leading writers, an anthology of original pieces on the author of Walden. Features essays by Jennifer Finney Boylan, Kristen Case, George Howe Colt, Gerald Early, Paul Elie, Will Eno, Adam Gopnik, Lauren Groff, Celeste Headlee, Pico Iyer, Alan Lightman, James Marcus, Megan Marshall, Michelle Nijhuis, Zoë Pollak, Jordan Salama, Tatiana Schlossberg,...