Michael Cunningham

Offers a portrait of the rugged beauty and rich historical significance of Provincetown, Massachusetts, as well as the impressive array of artists and writers that made the seaside town an artistic mecca.

A Walk Through Provincetown

Land's End

Nick Gracilla

The pilgrims, Cunningham reminds us, first landed in Provincetown, not Plymouth. And so continues a long story of unconventional and idiosyncratic folks finding refuge, inspiration, love, escape, and friendship in this remote summer mecca where the refined light attracted painters and artists, who attracted writers and layabouts, who mixed with once-whale, then cod fishermen, all in a small and deeply gay-friendly town where a 7' Cher-on-rollerblades is as likely to be seen flyering for the latest show as in line at the grocery store. For anyone who's visited, Land's End reads as a memoir from folks who live there year around, a peek into the winter seasons, and a memento of favorite hikes, beaches, and bars. For anyone who hasn't, Cunningham does not flinch in addressing the stories of the AIDS crisis and it's terrible impact on the town, of sand dunes that serve duty as ash cemeteries, of the bars, back alleys, and beach bluffs where naked men have sex, or down the way, nudist lesbians haul in coolers, umbrellas, and kids, or down the way, families setup campers and grill. This is traveling writing, memoir, and a celebration of a town at the end of the road. Recommended.

Land's End A Walk Through Provincetown

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