Michael Sims's six acclaimed non-fiction books include The Adventures of Henry Thoreau, The Story of Charlotte's Web, and Adam's Navel, and he edits the Connoisseur's Collection anthology series, which includes Dracula's Guest, The Dead Witness, The Phantom Coach, and the forthcoming Frankenstein Dreams. His writing has appeared in New Statesman, New York Times, Washington Post, and many other periodicals. He appears often on NPR, BBC, and other networks. He lives in Pennsylvania. michaelsimsbooks.com
The gentle, loving book White deserves ... There is so much to celebrate in Sims's book. His own descriptions of nature are evocative and subtle, and he probes at White's psyche without raking him over the coals ... White fans will savour this, as will anyone wondering how an author is made, and how a book comes to life * Scotsman on THE STORY OF CHARLOTTE'S WEB * Beguiling ... a telescopic, rather than encompassing biography ... Sims is excellent on the creative process of spinning Charlotte's Web, his language is clear and humorous * Irish Times on THE STORY OF CHARLOTTE'S WEB * A rich, entertaining testament to the triumph of a young man who never comfortably fit in, but who made a place for himself, nonetheless * Fresh Air on THE ADVENTURES OF HENRY THOREAU * [A] surpassingly vivid and vital chronicle of Thoreau's formative years. As Sims portrays a solemn boy nicknamed 'the Judge', we gain fresh understanding of Thoreau's choices and convictions on his way to becoming a seminal environmentalist and civil-disobedience guru * Booklist on THE ADVENTURES OF HENRY THOREAU * Sims offers intriguing sidelights and memorable details . . . [he] helps us to see Thoreau as a colorful, crotchety human being * Washington Post on THE ADVENTURES OF HENRY THOREAU * Sims gracefully captures what he calls Thoreau's 'ecstatic response to nature' * Wall Street Journal on THE ADVENTURES OF HENRY THOREAU * Splendid ... A fine stylist, Sims portrays these scenes with a beauty and an economy of language that would make the co-author of The Elements of Style proud ... Not only an engaging account of White's rise to literary prominence, through the New Yorker, but also his shyness, his awkwardness in love, his devotion to his wife, Katharine, and something else, something hard to identify but ever-present in the book, like the chirping of birds high in the trees at evening * Wall Street Journel on THE STORY OF CHARLOTTE'S WEB * Sims's research is thorough, his own prose clear, direct and concise: the ultimate homage. His book is a lovely and empathetic testament to E.B. White * Washington Post on THE STORY OF CHARLOTTE'S WEB * Intriguing ... Sims illuminates an era of journalism and essay-writing through the war. His style also sings in tune with White's lyricism, especially in descriptions of nature and the farm * Sunday Times on THE STORY OF CHARLOTTE'S WEB * Entertaining ... This is the biography its subject seems to have deserved. Gentle, occasionally whimsical and always respectful, it is a glimpse into the life of a man whose status as one of the children's classic authors is assured * Sunday Express on THE STORY OF CHARLOTTE'S WEB *