The Names of Things

In the Names of Things, Morrow tells the powerful story of her journey from the rural countryside of New York and a childhood marked by tragedy to the vast deserts of Egypt and Sudan and a life of adventure and discovery. Part memoir, part travelogue, and part exploration of the beauty and power of language, The Names of Things captures the imagination with delight and detail. This widely reviewed and praised title is a beautifully written book that superlatively manages to combine linguistic scholarship, philosophy, and adventure into a profoundly original and magical book. It enchants in several mutually illuminating ways: as a finely written travel book about Egypt and its desert people, as a celebration of the mystery of language and its power of revelation and creation, and as a refined, poignant memoir of the making of a soul. She sees with an artist's eye and listens with the ear of a poet, interweaving her travels with her personal and family background. It is a literally amazing and wonderful book. In prose that is spare yet richly descriptive, Morrow describes her childhood growing up in a small town near the Finger Lakes; recalls her early fascination with words and language; and talks of the unexpected deaths of her brother and sister -- losses that would forever influence the way Morrow experiences and views the world. She tells how she left home at sixteen to immerse herself in the study of Arabic and Egyptian hieroglyphs at Barnard, and how this led to her first of many trips to the desert. As she shares tales from her courageous travels in places where it's still rare for women to be unaccompanied, Morrow gives an illuminating view of the desert and its people, offers fascinating insights into the nature of language and life, and articulates the struggle of many women to reconcile a need for independence with the ties of love and commitment. All of these are topics that she's well-prepared to discuss in an interview.