As many of you know, I’ve been writing a book off and on for a while, quite a long while if I consider all of those journal scrawls from my whole life. Window Seat: The Story of a Traveling Life is both memoir and travel literature. Somewhere on a spectrum between a great-aunt’s personal account of family life back on the farm, and Paul Theroux, bringing us along as he circles the globe by train. I began with the hope that the writing and experiences would be more Theroux than my imaginary great aunt, but as long as I bring a few people along for the ride, I’m not sure it matters.

Window Seat, is about 114+ countries and territories, and cities, villages, and countrysides therein. Mostly just a glimpse, but a loving and curious one. It’s also about a time and places in the world of the contemporary performing arts and dance which prompted many of my travels. And it’s about my life as the protagonist in a lengthy life story, and the family and friends who have accompanied me.

Up front, I must tell you what I’ve been telling my frustrated editors and folks at Archway Publishing who want to help me sell books, that, basically, I wrote Window Seat for me, myself, and I (remember that useful terminology when, as kids we were claiming our personal space, property, or desires). I wrote it because I’ve liked my life a lot, and wanted to be able to relive it even unto my older and older old-age. I wrote it for my kids, grandkids, and friends also, who’ve shared my times and travels with me for better and worse—mostly better, I’m hoping.

And, in a way, and perhaps most importantly, I wrote it because I really love most of the world’s places, those in which I’ve lived and those only visited. If everyone could experience directly or even through books, the geography, history, literature, and cultures of this amazing planet, I’d like to think that we wouldn’t be so anxious to kill it and each other.

All of this is to say, I’ve written a book of which I’m proud, even though I have no illusions that it will be either financially lucrative or that it will bring about world peace. On the other hand, of course I would love for people to read it—I did try really hard to make it interesting to more people than my grandchildren who are sometimes my fellow travelers.

It’s available at Amazon and also Archway Bookstore. Archway Publishing is the self-publishing wing of Simon and Schuster, so hey…it’s the real deal!