Read Crossing the River Online
Authors: Amy Ragsdale
Crossing the River
Crossing the River
Copyright 2015 Amy Ragsdale
Seal Press
A Member of the Perseus Books Group
1700 Fourth Street
Berkeley, California
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission from the publisher, except by reviewers who may quote brief excerpts in connection with a review.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is pending.
978-1-58005-587-1
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Cover and interior design by Gopa & Ted2, Inc.
Photos courtesy of the author.
Printed in the United States of America
Distributed by Publishers Group West
For my parents, Jane and Wilmott Ragsdale, who led the way
For my intrepid family,
Peter, Molly, and Skyler
“As you set out for Ithaca, hope the voyage is a long one, full of adventure, full of discovery.”
âC.P. Cavafy
Contents
P
ART
I: C
RASH
C
OURSE
:
July, August, September
2. Not Too Big. Not Too Small.
11. The Table Goes Silent, Time for a Break
P
ART
II: H
OME
:
October, November, December
17. Why Are All the Poor People Black and the Rich People White?
18. My People: The Butcher, the Baker, the Furniture Maker
19. Surfing Through the Presidential Election
21. Bands of Ants and Silent Horsemen
22. A Viking Queen Floats Above a Chiffon Sea
25. New Year's Eve in Salvador
P
ART
III: W
IDENING THE
C
IRCLE
:
January, February
35. Dark-Skinned Nannies Wheel White-Skinned Babies to the Park
P
ART
IV: C
ROSSING THE
R
IVER
:
March, April, May
40. The Sensitive Cross-Cultural Approach
41. The Long Arm of American Ambition
44. The Long Stutter of Good-Byes