On Maps To Anywhere by Bernard Cooper

It seems to me that creative essays are a very specific category of writing whose boundaries are fuzzy and questionable. Many of these essays, I feel, could also be called short stories.

Regardless, I really enjoy reading this collection of essays. Cooper writes in a way that is funny and beautiful. The essays are separate but connect through the presence of Cooper. They are like snapshots of his life. Many include his father and he seems to really value the relationship he has with his father.

I personally really liked the one he wrote called How To Draw. I thought that his thoughts on art were really important because many things he said hold a lot of truth. For example, he says that he looked to art when his brother began to fall ill. It is true that art has always been a good way for people to cope with something traumatic. Much contemporary art, which he said he had focused his studies on, has this theme of a therapeutic relationship between the art and the artist, or art and society. However, I can't say I completely agree that all of those crafts and little drawings that he said he loved most are also my favorite kind of art. I see art a bit differently than him, it seems, but I can certainly appreciate that kind of art. I know the importance so I don't discount any type of art. I just have my own preferences.