I was delighted to have the opportunity to review this first issue of the beautifully produced Elsewhere : A Journal of Place.
This issue contains artwork, essays, notes and reviews capturing the essences of different places all over the world.
In Stories from the Shore, Paul Scraton travels to Loch Fyne Scotland in search of stories and herring, discovering along the way abandoned townships and traces of training sites for the 2nd World War.
Later in the journal, Scraton appears again with A Land on the Edge, reflecting on how 18th Century drainage schemes and the fighting of the 2nd World War have left lasting imprints on Oderbruch in Germany, on the border with Poland.
Over that border and into Poland, Paul Sullivan's photo essay, Lost in Nowa Huta explores one of only two preplanned socialist cities in the world, which was gifted to Poland by the Soviet Union in 1949.
Julian Hoffman explores an often overlooked areaof wetland in Prespa, Greece in his essay A line of wild surprise, outlining encounters with sparrowhawks, bearded reedlings, fox cubs and a wildcat:
The wildcat neared the edge of the field, reaching a shallow gulley clotted with reeds. Its tail swayed above the snow as it stopped to sniff the icy air. It read my scent riding in on the wind and turned slowly towards me.
A lesson in how to never take a patch of wildland for granted.
I was tempted to say that these essays were too short, to quote Marcel Krueger in hs review of Off the Map: some of these places in here are so fascinating they warrant a more detailed look. However, although that is very definitely true, I also felt that the length of the pieces here was well judged to give just that evocative flavour, to instil in the reader the wanting to know more.
I look forward to reading more from this journal. The next issue covers places as diverse as Dresden, Germany; Orkney, Scotland and Mumbai, India.
You can find out more about Elsewhere from their website.
Disclaimer: I received a review copy of this publication.
Thanks for posting this, Juliet. It's another one I've missed and it's perfect for me.
ReplyDeleteHi Juliet,
ReplyDeleteThe essay about Nowa Huta caught my eye as I live in Columbia, Maryland which is the first planned community in America. It is the egalitarian vision of one man, the late Jim Rouse. I remember reading a Reader's Digest article to my mom about this place way back in like, 1973 or so, never dreaming I would live here some day.
I wrote a poem on my blog today. Come read it?
And now for a word from Miss JB:
dEER tREEKiLN, hOw r U? i YaM gUD. I pET A TODE 2dAY unTIL daDDEE takED It AWAEE. DuZ YOR DADDEE do StuuFF LIk tHAT??????!!!!! bi 4 NoWE!! LUV jOsAfEEN!!!!!!!!!!!
:) m
Hi Juliet,
ReplyDeleteThe essay about Nowa Huta caught my eye as I live in Columbia, Maryland which is the first planned community in America. It is the egalitarian vision of one man, the late Jim Rouse. I remember reading a Reader's Digest article to my mom about this place way back in like, 1973 or so, never dreaming I would live here some day.
I wrote a poem on my blog today. Come read it?
And now for a word from Miss JB:
dEER tREEKiLN, hOw r U? i YaM gUD. I pET A TODE 2dAY unTIL daDDEE takED It AWAEE. DuZ YOR DADDEE do StuuFF LIk tHAT??????!!!!! bi 4 NoWE!! LUV jOsAfEEN!!!!!!!!!!!
:) m