Snapshots

Dinah Lenney has served as core faculty for the Bennington Writing Seminars and in the Master of Professional Writing Program at the University of Southern California. A longtime nonfiction editor at LARB, she herself has published several books in the genre, including Coffee (as part of the Bloomsbury Object Lessons series), The Object Parade and Bigger than Life, and co-edited Brief Encounters: A Collection of Literary Nonfiction with the late Judith Kitchen. Dinah's essays and reviews have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, and The Washington Post among many other publications.

The authors of the resonant essays in Dinah Lenney’s beautifully edited anthology explore the poignant mysteries embedded in even the most unassuming snapshot, reminding us that, while a photograph is a record of a vanished moment, it is also alive to the ongoing evolution of memory and self-knowledge.

• Introduction: a picture is worth a thousand wordsPrologue: Emerson Motorworks: Rochester, Vermont, MAJOR JACKSON1. WAY BACK WHENVigilante, SONJA LIVINGSTONGirl By Default, KATE CARROLL DE GUTESGoodbye to Everything and Everybody, NAOMI SHIHAB NYE2. FAMILY PORTRAITSFreedom, GRACE TALUSANAxed, AIMEE LIUSerpentine, SEJAL SHAHOn the Street with the Three Red Brick Houses, CLIFFORD THOMPSONThe Celebration, SUZANNE BERNE3. MIRROR, MIRRORThis is the Start of a Wednesday, HANNAH HOWARDThe Distance, ALEX MARZANO-LESNEVICHMacIntosh, ATTICA LOCKETorn Self-Portrait with Striped Shirt, WAYNE KOESTENBAUMMy Shadow Self, PICO IYER4. WISH YOU WERE HEREGarden, IVY POCHODAPower Lines, MARA NASELLIThe Feast of San Silverio, JESSICA SILVESTEROff Map, LYNELL GEORGEBackcountry, STUART DYBEK5. BEFORE AND AFTERRichard and Gabrielle Straight, SUSAN STRAIGHTFifty, SVEN BIRKERTSFinita, ADRIANA E. RAMIREZTrick or Treat, DIANA WAGMANCapitola, TOD GOLDBERGHow to Safely Transport Your Wurlitzer, EMILIE PASCALE BECKEaston, Maryland, LESLIE JAMISON6. ELEGIESTan Guapos, ALEX ESPINOZAMemento, VANESSA HUAEnvy, AMY GERSTLERYamato, BRANDON SHIMODA7. VIEWFINDERSGuitar with Burning Candle, AIMEE BENDERWhat’s in the Background, AISHA SABATINI SLOANCategories, DINAH LENNEYGirl with Corn, DINTY W. MOOREWild Turkey, DAVID L. ULINPostscript: Piggies, ABIGAIL THOMASAlphabetical table of contentsAppendix: List Of ThemesAppendix: List Of Writing PromptsAppendix: A Very Abbreviated List of Recommended ReadingContributor BiosPhoto Credits