Elyssa East, Dogtown: Death and Enchantment in a New England Ghost Town

Start: 04/21/2010 7:00 pm

"This book is a wonder. I fell completely under its spell--Elyssa East does not merely reupholster the old bones of Dogtown, she plunges you headlong into the green mystery of this place; I loved the looking-glass chill of opening her book and finding myself in another world entirely. Dogtown is true literary sorcery, a portal to one of the strangest places in America."

Karen Russell, author of St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves

"Beautifully written, deftly told, and suspenseful to the very end--a stunning work of reportage. A keenly observant writer with a painter's eye for detail, East explores the strange, hypnotic spell that Dogtown seems to cast upon all--including herself--who enter its woods. The result is a riveting and very personal book that both dazzles and unnerves."

Julie Otsuka, author of When the Emperor Was Divine

Elyssa East’s writing has been published in various New England regional magazines as well as The Brooklyn Rail, Guernica, and Mr. Beller’s Neighborhood, and is forthcoming in The New York Times. A scene from Elyssa’s opera libretto, Mr. Hawthorne’s Engagement, was performed with singers from the Met Opera as part of American Opera Project’s Composers and the Voice series. Elyssa created Columbia University’s Artists’ Resource Center and ran KGB Bar’s Columbia University Faculty Selects Reading Series for three years. Additionally she has worked as a nonfiction reviews editor at Publisher’s Weekly; the Managing Director of the Maine Summer Dramatic Institute and Executive Producer of Shakespeare in Deering Oaks Park in Portland, Maine; an archaeologist’s assistant; and a dump-truck driver. A native of Georgia, Elyssa currently resides in New York City.