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Collections of Nothing William Davies King

Collections of Nothing By William Davies King

Collections of Nothing by William Davies King


Condition - Good
Out of stock

Summary

Nearly everyone collects something, even those who don't think of themselves as collectors. Part memoir, part reflection on the mania of acquisition, this title takes a hard look at this habitual hoarding to see what truths it can reveal about the impulse to accumulate.

Collections of Nothing Summary

Collections of Nothing by William Davies King

Nearly everyone collects something, even those who don't think of themselves as collectors. William Davies King, on the other hand, has devoted decades to collecting nothing - and a lot of it. With Collections of Nothing, he takes a hard look at this habitual hoarding to see what truths it can reveal about the impulse to accumulate. Part memoir, part reflection on the mania of acquisition, Collections of Nothing begins with the stamp collection that King was given as a boy. In the following years, rather than rarity or pedigree, he found himself searching out the lowly and the lost, the cast-off and the undesired: objects that, merely by gathering and retaining them, he could imbue with meaning, even value. As he relates the story of his burgeoning collections, King also offers a fascinating meditation on the human urge to collect. This wry, funny, even touching appreciation and dissection of the collector's art as seen through the life of a most unusual specimen will appeal to anyone who has ever felt the unappeasable power of that acquisitive fever.

Collections of Nothing Reviews

What makes this book, bred of a midlife crisis, extraordinary is the way King weaves his autobiography into the account of his collection, deftly demonstrating that the two stories are essentially one.... His hard-won self-awareness gives his disclosures an intensity that will likely resonate with all readers, even those whose collections of nothing contain nothing at all. - New Yorker King's extraordinary book is a memoir served up on the backs of all things he collects.... His story starts out sounding odd and singular - who is this guy? - but by the end, you recognize yourself in a lot of what he does. - Julia Keller, Chicago Tribune Part memoir and part disquisition on the psychological impulses behind the urge to accumulate, Collections of Nothing is a wonderfully frank and engaging look at one man's detritus-fueled pathology.... King emerges by book's end a flawed but truly lovable eccentric - an 'antimonk, carefully preserving and sustaining a vital darkness, heavy with various glues, through a forbidding period of enlightenment.' May this darkness reign. - Henry Alford, New York Times Book Review

About William Davies King

William Davies King is professor in the Department of Theater and Dance at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Additional information

CIN0226437019G
9780226437019
0226437019
Collections of Nothing by William Davies King
Used - Good
Paperback
The University of Chicago Press
20091001
176
N/A
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - Collections of Nothing