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Description edit
Drawn from the work of StoryCorps, the largest and most ambitious oral history project in American history, comes this tapestry of the stories Americans have been sharing from their lives to leave behind to their loved ones. In its two permanent public recording booths in New York City, at... read more
Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit
Summary edit
From more than ten thousand interviews, StoryCorps-the largest oral history project in the nation's history-presents a tapestry of American stories, told by the people who lived them to the people they love.
StoryCorps began with the idea that everyone has an important story to tell. And... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)
Characters/People edit
- David Isay: Narrator
- Jonathan: Good stories
- Michael: Add a description of this character.
- Tom
- Donna
- Nadine
- Mr. Wilson
- Mary
- Gina
- Danny
- Carolyn
- Kathryn
- Claire
- Paul Mortimer
- Miss Devine
- Sanjay
- Mr. Lineback
- Linda
- Kim
Quotes edit
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“"I exist! I exist!"”
Homeless man
- Popular Highlights from Kindle Customers
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“I am still determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may be, for I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions and not upon our circumstances.” So that’s very much, I think, about being in the moment and just accepting what’s happening.
Highlighted by 15 Kindle customers -
“Aunts are to be a pattern and example to all aunts; to be a delight to boys (and girls) and a comfort to their parents; and to show that at least one daughter in every generation ought to remain unmarried, and raise the profession of auntship to a fine art.”
Highlighted by 13 Kindle customers -
They didn’t see the world, but they saw their world—which maybe is better than seeing the world.
Highlighted by 12 Kindle customers -
Grief is when you get up the next day and you see the sun, and you say, “Will I ever think the sun is beautiful again?”
Highlighted by 12 Kindle customers -
Never assume from how people look that you understand who they really are. Many also say they’ve come to recognize a simple truth: that people are basically good.
Highlighted by 9 Kindle customers -
These stories are a reminder that if we spent a little less time listening to the racket of divisive radio and TV talk shows and a little more time listening to each other, we would be a better, more thoughtful, and more compassionate nation.
Highlighted by 7 Kindle customers -
These interviews remind us that, contrary to what we might infer from the media, we are not just a nation of celebrity worship and consumption but, rather, a people defined by our character, courage, and heart. These stories are a record of our shared humanity. Hearing them, it becomes clear that no matter who we are or where we come from, there is much more in common that we share than that divides us.
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If you go with that statement, “Well, God has more work for you to do,” then the flip side is “God didn’t have any more work for all those other people.” And I don’t believe that. I don’t believe in a God that is arbitrary like that and intervenes in our lives in that “destiny” kind of way. What I came to was that there is randomness. There is chance in our world. It impacts all of us in big ways and small ways. And on that day chance impacted me and all the other people on that plane by where you were sitting.
Highlighted by 6 Kindle customers -
One of the things that has accompanied me, followed me, surrounded me, wrapped me is that feeling of gratitude for whatever happens. That event was like being picked up by the scruff of the neck and shaken. (Laughter.) And God says, “This is your only life! Just be grateful for it. (Crying.) Just be grateful that you’ve got these days and these hours and these wonderful people in your life. Just be grateful for that.”
Highlighted by 5 Kindle customers -
Rather than look for what you have in common, you have to grow together. The only reason that marriages work is because you are friends and are respecting of each other.
Highlighted by 4 Kindle customers
Setting & Locations edit
- Durham, North Carolina
- New York City
- Santa Monica, California
- Burlington, Vermont
- Sarasota, Florida
- New Town, North Dakota: Fort Berthold reservation
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Auschwitz
- Texas
- Chicago
- Brooklyn
- United States
- Newark
- Stuyvesant
First Sentence edit
When StoryCorps launched, I wasn't sure whether the interviews would resonate with anyone other than the participants and their families.
Table of Contents edit
Introduction
Author's Note
Home and Family
Work and Dedication
Journeys
History and Struggle
Fire and Water
The Story of StoryCorps
Afterword
Acknowledgments
StoryCorps Facilitators, 2003-06
Appendix: Favorite StoryCorps Questions
Authors & Contributors edit
- David Isay (Editor) - Isay edited this collection of stories--memoirs, narratives--that were drawn from NPR's StoryCorp Project. In addition, Isay wrote the introduction to the text.
First Edition edit
Original Language: English
Publisher: Penguin Press HC
Country: USA
Publication Date: 2007
ISBN: 1594201404
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Penguin Press HC
Country: USA
Publication Date: 2007
ISBN: 1594201404
Page Count: 304
Classification edit
- Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
- Dewey: 973.92
Subjects edit
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