Quest for Walden

the long version

Ever since Henry David Thoreau penned his masterpiece Walden - a chronicle of his two-year sojourn in the woods of Concord, Massachusetts - Americans have yearned for a return to pastoral life, to a place where the simplicities and beauty of nature dictate a quality of life not found in modern urban America. The metaphor of "Walden" inspired many to seek out and write about country life and the back-to-the-land movement in America. This is the first book-length study of that interesting genre, the country book written primarily for urban dwellers. It gives detailed content analyses of both country-life essays and guides to country living, from 1863 through 1995.