Bland Simpson: North Carolina (Land Of Water, Land Of Sky)

When I first heard about Bland Simpson’s book North Carolina: Land Of Water, Land Of Sky, I instantly requested it from my local library. It had gotten good reviews and I assumed that there was no way I could possibly dislike this book.

Well, let me state for the record that I don’t exactly dislike this book. However, I did find myself liking it far less than expected. Which is really somewhat puzzling in that all of the pieces are there, for this to be an enjoyable reading experience. But it’s as though all of these components add up to a mess, and this nonfiction tome doesn’t really work as a result.

First off, let me state that many of the photographs are stunning. Taken by the collective trio of Ann Cary Simpson, Scott Taylor, and Tom Earnhardt, these are without question the highlight of this book. As far as the writing, if considered in a vacuum, I would say that I mostly dig Bland Simpson’s style. However, if rating whether a work truly succeeds, you have to consider more than just the words/sentences/paragraphs. And in this, though his little vignettes are loosely organized by region, the structure is an absolute mess. He’s kind of bouncing all over the place, and blending history with personal anecdotes in an abrupt, not exactly successful fusion, often dropping names without necessarily explaining who these people are. The sum total of this approach is a way more confusing read than one would expect. Simpson’s effort here is actually what I might term accidentally life changing for me, in fact, because it’s forcing me to reconsider whether my own style might be uncomfortably similar to his, and whether I too have been confusing people for years without even realizing it.

In summary, despite the impressive presentation, and the seeming comprehensiveness of the material, if you are glancing at the table of contents, this is a great deal less informative than you would expect. Yes he has clearly worked very hard on this project. I would by no means consider this hack work or anything like that. But at the same time, it seems to be promising much more history and local color than is actually delivered here, and instead giving you far more about his personal life than you wanted. About 50 or so pages in, if you stop and consider the matter, you will realize you have learned far less about North Carolina than it seemed, despite his dazzling, meandering style. I am also forced to deduct a half star for non-ironic use of the word lo.