The New York Times Book Review - Corby Kummer
Followers of John McPhee, perhaps the most revered nonfiction narrative journalist of our time, will luxuriate in the shipshape prose of Draft No. 4…Writers looking for the secrets of his stripped-bark style and painstaking structure will have to be patient with what is a discursive, though often delightful, short book. McPhee's publisher is presenting it as a "master class," but it's really a memoir of writing during a time of editorial cosseting that now seems as remote as the court of the Romanovs. Readerly patience will be rewarded by plentiful examples of the author's sinewy prose and, toward the end, by advice and tips that will help writers looking to become better practitioners of the craft and to stay afloat in what has become a self-service economy…The last three chapters, "Checkpoints," "Draft No. 4" and "Omission"…will be assigned and reassigned by grateful writing teachers. Perhaps the most generous passages in this generous book are in these final chapters…
The New York Times - Parul Sehgal
[McPhee's] new book…is a sunny tribute to the gloomy side of the writing life: the insecurity, dread, shame, envy, magical thinking, pointless rituals, financial instability, self-hatred—the whole "masochistic self-inflicted paralysis of a writer's normal routine." And then the queasy desire to do it all over again…[Draft. No. 4] has the feel of a valedictory lap…It's McPhee on McPhee; commentary on his greatest hits, a little backstory, a little affectionate gossip…It's an intimate book—and intimacy is rare in McPhee's work.
Publishers Weekly
05/15/2017
McPhee (Silk Parachute), a staff writer at the New Yorker and journalism professor at Princeton, offers here not a general how-to-do-it manual but a personal how-I-did-it of richer depth—not bouillon cubes, but rich stock. Some of McPhee’s famous profile subjects (Woody Allen, Jackie Gleason) wander through the narrative, but only tangentially to the main subject, which is always writing. McPhee reveals a life spent with publishers, copy editors, fact checkers, and even “minders,” those “watchdogs in coats and ties whose presence is a condition for an interview.” He also uncovers the special world of magazines, notably the New Yorker when the legendary William Shawn reigned. He attends to technique, wrestling with tools of the journalistic trade (e.g., voice recorder, computer) while confessing his “basic technology” to be “a pencil and a lined four-by-six notebook.” McPhee the teacher is a presence throughout, though rarely proscriptive. Questions guide—what must you put in, and leave out? How to handle your subject’s own words? Along with specific advice, there is an implied and comforting message: that for most writers, this is not easy. McPhee lays it all out with the wit of one who believes that “writing has to be fun at least once in a pale blue moon.” (Sept.)
From the Publisher
John McPhee is the recipient of the 2017 Ivan Sandrof Lifetime Achievement Award
"Followers of John McPhee, perhaps the most revered nonfiction narrative journalist of our time, will luxuriate in the ship-shape prose of "Draft No. 4" . . . Delightful . . . Interspersed with observations every writer should remember . . . The last three chapters will be assigned and reassigned by grateful writing teachers . . . I savored every word"—Corby Kummer, New York Times Book Review
"[Draft No. 4]'s combination of shop talk, war stories, slices of autobiography, and priceless insights and lessons suggests what it must be like to occupy a seat in the McPhee classroom . . . McPhee's observations about writing are always invigorating to engage with. And Draft No. 4 belongs on the short shelf of essential books about the craft." —Ben Yagoda, The Wall Street Journal
"A sunny tribute to the gloomy side of the writing life . . . It's McPhee on McPhee; commentary on his greatest hits, a little backstory, a little affectionate gossip . . . His advice is in the service of making the text as sturdy, useful and beautiful as possible. It's an intimate book—and intimacy is rare in McPhee's work . . . For most of his career, McPhee has written reverently about . . . methodical, somewhat solitary men (mostly) who work with their hands and take quiet pride in their work." —Parul Sehgal, The New York Times
"A book that any writer, aspiring or accomplished, could profitably read, study and argue with . . . For over half a century, John McPhee—now 86—has been writing profiles of scientists, eccentrics and specialists of every stripe. All are exceptional at what they do. So, too, is their discerning chronicler." —Michael Dirda, The Washington Post
"Draft No. 4 is as lean and punchy a book as anything McPhee wrote in his thirties . . . The book's ostensible focus of imparting the wisdom accumulated over a lifetime of writing blurs often and very enjoyably with reminiscences about McPhee's own long apprenticeship in the craft . . . The star attraction here isn't the method but the man; readers who go in knowing that will be endlessly fascinated—and may learn a good deal." —Steve Donoghue, The Christian Science Monitor
"The beauty of Draft No. 4 lies partly in our watching a master deconstruct the nearly invisible habits of his work. The result celebrates a life—probing, colorful, singular—devoted to writing." —Joan Silverman, Portland Press Herald
"Reading [these essays] consecutively in one volume constitutes a master class in writing, as the author clearly demonstrates why he has taught so successfully part-time for decades at Princeton University. . . . Almost every sentence sparkles, with wordplay evident throughout. . . . Readers already familiar with the author's masterpieces . . . will feel especially fulfilled by McPhee's discussions of the specifics from his many books. . . . A superb book about doing his job by a master of his craft." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"[Draft No. 4 is] not a general how-to-do-it manual but a personal how-I-did-it of richer depth—not bouillon cubes, but rich stock . . . McPhee lays it all out with the wit of one who believes that 'writing has to be fun at least once in a pale blue moon.'" —Publishers Weekly
"McPhee has set the standard for the genre of creative nonfiction . . . With humor and aplomb, he recalls anecdotes about how he approached a story: from interviewing and reporting to drafting and revising, to working with editors and publishers . . . [Draft No. 4 is] a well-wrought road map to navigating the twists and turns, thrills and pitfalls, and joys and sorrows of the writer's journey." —Donna Marie Smith, Library Journal
"Eight crisply instructive and drolly self-deprecating essays [are] gathered here in this exceptionally entertaining and illuminating book . . . [Draft No. 4] is expert, charming, and invigorating." —Donna Seaman, Booklist
"McPhee taught us to revere language, to care about every word, and to abjure the loose synonym . . . Perhaps there are writers out there who make it look easy, but that is not the example set by McPhee. He is of the school of thought that says a writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than for other people. Some people joke about lashing themselves to the chair to get a piece of writing done, but McPhee actually has done it, with the belt of his bathrobe . . . I doubt many of us ever took a class that resonated so profoundly over the years." —Joel Achenbach, Princeton Alumni Weekly
"In college, I took a twelve-week writing course with McPhee at Princeton. I received a ‘P’—for ‘Pass.’ This was a mercy. McPhee has been teaching the course, so far as I know, since the Silurian Period. More than half of his former students have gone on to work at various magazines and newspapers, to write books. Actually, only a small percentage of McPhee’s students studied with him at Princeton; he has been for dozens and dozens of nonfiction writers what Robert Lowell used to be for poets and poet wannabes of a certain age: the model." —David Remnick
"McPhee’s sentences are born of patience and attention: he seems to possess a pair of eyes with the swivel, zoom and reach of a peregrine falcon’s, and a pair of ears with the recording ability of a dictaphone. He notices almost everything." —Robert Macfarlane, The Guardian
Library Journal
06/15/2017
In the tradition of William Strunk Jr. and E. B. White, who enlivened modern writing with The Elements of Style, McPhee (Encounters with the Archdruid) has set the standard for the genre of creative nonfiction. In this collection of essays, previously published in The New Yorker, McPhee reflects on his experience writing long-form nonfiction books and magazine articles. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author, who started at Time magazine, draws insights into the writing process from his career at The New Yorker and teaching writing at Princeton University. With humor and aplomb, he recalls anecdotes about how he approached a story: from interviewing and reporting to drafting and revising, to working with editors and publishers. These essays reveal how his personal experiences and observations informed and shaped his groundbreaking prose. VERDICT Aspiring authors expecting a step-by-step manual on how to write and publish nonfiction will have to look elsewhere. Here they will find a well-wrought road map to navigating the twists and turns, thrills and pitfalls, and joys and sorrows of the writer's journey. [See Prepub Alert, 3/20/17.]—Donna Marie Smith, Palm Beach Cty. Lib. Syst., FL
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2017-05-09
The renowned writer offers advice on information-gathering and nonfiction composition.The book consists of eight instructive and charming essays about creating narratives, all of them originally composed for the New Yorker, where McPhee (Silk Parachute, 2010, etc.) has been a contributor since the mid-1960s. Reading them consecutively in one volume constitutes a master class in writing, as the author clearly demonstrates why he has taught so successfully part-time for decades at Princeton University. In one of the essays, McPhee focuses on the personalities and skills of editors and publishers for whom he has worked, and his descriptions of those men and women are insightful and delightful. The main personality throughout the collection, though, is McPhee himself. He is frequently self-deprecating, occasionally openly proud of his accomplishments, and never boring. In his magazine articles and the books resulting from them, McPhee rarely injects himself except superficially. Within these essays, he offers a departure by revealing quite a bit about his journalism, his teaching life, and daughters, two of whom write professionally. Throughout the collection, there emerge passages of sly, subtle humor, a quality often absent in McPhee's lengthy magazine pieces. Since some subjects are so weighty—especially those dealing with geology—the writing can seem dry. There is no dry prose here, however. Almost every sentence sparkles, with wordplay evident throughout. Another bonus is the detailed explanation of how McPhee decided to tackle certain topics and then how he chose to structure the resulting pieces. Readers already familiar with the author's masterpieces—e.g., Levels of the Game, Encounters with the Archdruid, Looking for a Ship, Uncommon Carriers, Oranges, and Coming into the Country—will feel especially fulfilled by McPhee's discussions of the specifics from his many books. A superb book about doing his job by a master of his craft.
