John McPhee

With his uncommonly graceful way with words, sharp eye for details, and knack for getting along with just about everybody, John McPhee can write compellingly about virtually any topic. His enormous body of work includes books about oranges, geology, watercraft, basketball, and characters both famous and anything but. In his latest book, the Pulitzer-winning journalist turns his attention to the world of heavy transport, tagging along with various freight haulers, from the UPS man to towboat captain, as they go about their business. Everything we eat, wear, use, and own comes to us from somewhere else, and McPhee has coaxed some amazing, seldom-heard tales from the people who make their livelihoods moving all manner of commodities from one place to another.