State by State (2008)

This eclectic collection of essays describing the ordinary people and places within our 50 states is as essential as the Rand McNally atlas. It includes pieces from the likes of Rick Moody (Conn.) and S.E. Hinton (Okla.), each searching for a sliver of the American character. Alternately brash and bashful (''You're probably just skimming through this chapter on your way to Nevada,'' writes Nebraskan Alexander Payne), each literary foray in State by State is well worth the trip. A