. . . . . . . . "[This is] an essential collection from one of the finest thinkers and stylists in contemporary letters.... Ranging in subject from Sir Walter Raleigh to Kafka, Nathaniel Hawthorne to the high-wire artist Philippe Petit, conceptual artist Sophie Calle to Suster's own typewriter, the World Trade Center catastrophe to his beloved New York City itself, [this book] records the passions and insights of a writer who \"will be remembered as one of the great writers of our time.\" -Dust jacket." . "Collected prose autobiographical writings, true stories, critical essays, prefaces and collaborations with artists" .