''Blue Highways'' is an autobiographical travel book, published in 1982, by William Least Heat-Moon, born William Trogdon.

Summary

In 1978, after separating from his wife and losing his job as a teacher, Heat-Moon, 38 at the time, took an extended road trip in a circular route around the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, sticking to only the "Blue Highways". He had coined the term to refer to small, forgotten, out-of-the-way roads connecting rural America, which were drawn in blue on the

Rand McNally Rand McNally is an American technology and publishing company that provides mapping software and hardware for consumer electronics, commercial transportation, and education markets. The company is headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois with a di ...

road atlases of the time. He outfitted his van with a bunk, a camping stove, a portable toilet and a copy of

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman Jr. (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist; he also wrote two novels. He is considered one of the most influential poets in American literature and world literature. Whitman incor ...

's ''

Leaves of Grass ''Leaves of Grass'' is a poetry collection by American poet Walt Whitman. After self-publishing it in 1855, he spent most of his professional life writing, revising, and expanding the collection until his death in 1892. Either six or nine separa ...

'' and John Neihardt's ''

Black Elk Speaks ''Black Elk Speaks'' is a 1932 book by John G. Neihardt, an American poet and writer, who relates the story of Black Elk, an Oglala Lakota medicine man. Black Elk spoke in Lakota and Black Elk's son, Ben Black Elk, who was present during th ...

''. Referring to the Native American resurrection ritual, he named the van " Ghost Dancing", and embarked on a three-month soul-searching tour of the United States, wandering from small town to small town, stopping often at towns with interesting names. The book chronicles the 13,000-mile journey and the people he meets along the way, as he steers clear of cities and interstates, avoiding fast food and exploring local American culture. Stories that arose from Least Heat-Moon's research as well as historical facts are included about each area visited, as well as conversations with characters such as a

Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbat ...

evangelist hitchhiker, a teenage runaway, a boat builder, a monk, an Appalachian log cabin restorer, a rural

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

prostitute, fishermen, a

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Native American medical student, owners of

Western saloon A Western saloon is a kind of bar particular to the Old West. Saloons served customers such as fur trappers, cowboys, soldiers, lumberjacks, businessmen, lawmen, outlaws, miners, and gamblers. A saloon might also be known as a "watering tro ...

s and remote country stores, a

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syrup farmer, and

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island dwellers.

Reception

''Blue Highways'' was on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list for 42 weeks in 1982–83.

Robert Penn Warren Robert Penn Warren (April 24, 1905 – September 15, 1989) was an American poet, novelist, literary critic and professor at Yale University. He was one of the founders of New Criticism. He was also a charter member of the Fellowship of Southern ...

called the book "a masterpiece," writing that " east Heat-Moonmakes America seem new, in a very special way, and its people new."

Cultural impact

* ''Blue Highways Revisited:'' Written and photographed by Edgar I. Ailor III, and Edgar I. Ailor IV, ''Blue Highways Revisited'' is a 30-year follow-up to Heat-Moon's original book. The Ailors re-travel the routes of Heat-Moon and seek out the sites he visited, as well as the people he interacted with along the way. * Robert W. Cole Jr. and Midwestern Schools: Influenced by Heat-Moon's ''Blue Highways'', Cole, a then-editor of the ''Phi Delta Kappan'' magazine, decided to take leave in order to study rural and small-town schools in the American Mid-West. * ''Blue Highways'' and ''

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'': Listed as number nine of fifteen travel books that "will change the way you see the world." * ''Four Calendar Cafe: Blue Highways'' inspired the name of the Cocteau Twins' 1993 album '' Four-Calendar Café.''Guthrie, Robin
Chapter 16 - 1993/1994
Cocteau Twins History

References

External links

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Littourati
American travel books Books by writers from peoples indigenous to the Americas {{US-bio-book-stub