“A writer at the height of her powers” (Oprah.com) reflects on a literary life pulled in two directions: from war zone journalism to the writing and teaching of fiction In an essay entitled “Spirit and Vision” Melissa Pritchard poses the question: “Why write?” Her answer reverberates throughout A Solemn Pleasure , presenting an undeniable case for both the power of language and the nurturing constancy of the writing life. Whether describing the deeply interior imaginative life required to write fiction, searching for the lost legacy of American literature as embodied by Walt Whitman, being embedded with a young female GI in Afghanistan, traveling with Ethiopian tribes, or revealing the heartrending story of her informally adopted son William, a former Sudanese child slave, this is nonfiction vividly engaged with the world. In these fifteen essays, Pritchard shares her passion for writing and storytelling that educates, honors, and inspires. Melissa Pritchard is the author of the novel Palmerino , the short story collection The Odditorium , and the essay collection A Solemn Pleasure: To Imagine, Witness, and Write , among other books. Emeritus Professor of English and Women’s Studies at Arizona State University, she now lives in Columbus, Georgia. Praise for A Solemn Pleasure Firecracker Award Finalist Poets & Writers “Best Books for Writers” selection Literary Hub “Best Books about Books” selection Image: Art, Faith, Mystery “Top Ten of the Year” selection Publishers Weekly “Top 10: Literary Biographies, Essays & Criticism” selection Foreword Reviews “Books for Grads” selection “Altogether magnificent. . . . [The essay “Spirit and Vision”] bears that cynicism-disarming quality of a commencement address and enchants the psyche like an incantation. . . . [Pritchard] ends the piece like one might a commencement address—and if this were one, it would certainly be among the greatest commencement addresses of all time. . . . Complement A Solemn Pleasure , seriously pleasurable in its entirety, with Susan Sontag’s advice to writers, Virginia Woolf on writing and self-doubt, and Cheryl Strayed’s no-nonsense wisdom on the craft.” — Maria Popova, Marginalian “Invite[s] underlining, re-reading, and reading aloud. . . . Pritchard [is] a beautifully descriptive stylist and deeply committed artist. . . . A Solemn Pleasure is not only a great way for readers to meet [her], but an excellent choice to mark the launch of Bellevue Literary Press’ new series, The Art of the Essay.” — Rain Taxi Review of Books “Pritchard once again validates the assertion that all true art is moral, as it instructs by seeking to improve life.” — World Literature Today “Pritchard’s essay collection is one to keep by your bedside to read again and again. Like Lewis Hyde’s The Gift , Pritchard plumbs the depths of why we write, in order to uncover the important reasons we need to write. . . . This book will give you super powers.” — Atticus Review “A spirited, intelligent, wide-ranging exploration of the joys, frustrations, and trials of the life of the writer.” — Colorado Review “A fine, delicate essayist. . . . Pritchard’s writing is inspiring.” — Literary Hub “Elegant, funny. . . . Pritchard’s own prose embodies her conviction that great writing involves both imagining the inner life of its subjects and a ‘bearing witness’ to the human condition and the transcendent mystery that surrounds it.” — Image: Art, Faith, Mystery “Ethically rich. . . . Pay attention to the surge of [Pritchard’s] mind and the spiritual energy she demonstrates.” — Spirituality & Practice “As insightful as it is engaging. . . . Pritchard will make you cry, think, and laugh; each essay is filled with wit and wisdom. . . . A great read for writers, readers looking for enlightenment, and those who savor nonfiction that explores the spiritual through the everyday.” — Library Journal (starred review) “Moving. . . . Readers will treasure the book’s numerous memorable moments.” — Publishers Weekly “Heartfelt . . . bear[s] powerful witness to suffering, compassion, and transcendence.” — Kirkus Reviews “From grief to daily rituals to the shape of a dachshund, Pritchard insightfully connects the most obscure of subjects to reveal gems of truth about the human experience.” — Foreword Reviews “Full of lovely sentences that often achieve an almost mystical, spiritual power.” — NewPages “Gorgeous and moving. . . . Each of these essays confirms that to write is to think and feel, to take part in the profound and sacred act of witness. Read together—and the book is so arresting that many readers will finish it in a single sitting—the essays amount to a clear and irrefutable mandate for empathy.” — Bret Anthony Johnston (from the foreword) “‘Great writers are witnesses to the spirit of their age,’ Pritchard declares. And in her splendid collection of essays, A Solemn Pleasure , she bears witness to matters great and small, from the quotidian joys of a borrowed