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| A Hunting Trip | |
| While hunting through the shelves recently at Choctaw Books,
I happened upon a baby elephant folio of Audubon’s Birds of America. I bought the
book on sight, thrilled to have even a modern, reduced-size version of this classic work
of art. I say “reduced-size,” but it is still massive: 12” wide, 15”
tall, 3” thick, and weighing nearly 20 pounds. After I carried the book up and down a
few crowded aisles, it did indeed feel like a baby elephant in my arms. To study the rich color plates of black shimmers, roseate spoonbills, American oystercatchers, white-rumped sandpipers, and hundreds more, is to be humbled. Of them all, I like Audubon’s warblers the best. They are slight in size, often hidden in a green maze of holly leaves or among flowering plants I cannot name but can somehow smell. What is the unique essence of an Audubon print? Is it his ordering of the birds in space with a subtle touch of drama? Or the quiet welcoming of the viewer to a private vision of the public world? Or is it something else beyond words? Audubon created a poignant dialogue between nature and artist, and artist and reader, that is alive and well some 150 years after he issued his first series of life-size prints. In our complicated world, it’s nice to have a few simple passions. We like books. We like birds. We like books about birds. Nothing could be simpler. And you don’t need a license for this bird hunting – just patience and a good reading lamp. |
As we approach the end of the so-called American Century, it
is fitting that we reflect on writers who have enriched our lives. Naturally, we think of
Eudora Welty. On April 13, she celebrated her ninetieth birthday. That she met this
milestone is not the real news; the real news is that her work has not lost its power, has
not fallen into obscurity, has not been overlooked in this age of sensationalism. As we at Millsaps Magazine reviewed covers for this issue, we returned again and again to Welty sitting in her chair with a pen in hand: for Miss Welty is literature. We celebrate her stories for many reasons, chief among them the capacity for continuous revelation that dwells within them. Her work bears witness to the fact that great writing, like all great art, is eternally new and fresh and bold and awaiting discovery. This double issue is thick with features, and yet we have only scratched the surface of the topic of Millsaps and books. We promise more book-related profiles and reviews in upcoming issues, including many by and about our faculty. So join us on the Great Book Hunt. And let us know what you think of this, our first chapter. Sincerely,
Director of Publications/College Editor PAGE 1 OF 2 | NEXT PAGE |
Millsaps Magazine | Millsaps | Last Edited May 11, 1999 |
