No Straight Road Takes You There is a book of essays by Rebecca Solnit that explores the intersection of politics, literature, and imagining how the world could be.

I previously read Men Explain Things To Me many years back and remember really enjoying Solnit’s writing and her collection of essays. I was not able to get pulled into this book in the same way though and ultimately did not finish reading this book.

I don’t think it is the fault of the author but rather my expectations of the work, going in. I think I was expecting more of a memoir style of writing, which is not what this book is trying to do. If someone is looking for a collection of essays that includes cultural and literary critiques, perspectives on politics and current sociocultural issues in the news, this might be up their street. I was hoping for essays that felt more personal and were in the style of memoir, so this wasn’t ultimately for me!

I've read everything that Rebecca Solnit has written. She's one of those few authors where I will immediately read anything they put out just because I'm such a fan of their previous works. I've read her work as I've matured, and I'm proud to say that she has had an enormous impact on the way that I understand what's happening in society as it goes through changes. This new set of essays are fantastic and give us the language and context we need to make sense of everything going on in the world right now.

"No Straight Road Takes You There" is more than just a collection of essays; it’s a heartfelt meditation on the beauty of life's unpredictability. Solnit encourages us to accept the complexities and contradictions that come with our experiences, fostering a sense of resilience and hope amid uncertainty.

This book is a must-read for fans of Solnit's work, as well as for anyone seeking to deepen their understanding of the intricacies of the human experience. In a world that often insists on clear-cut paths, Solnit's reflections on the winding roads of life offer a refreshing perspective.

I sometimes have the same issue with essay collections as I do with short story collections -- because you will naturally like some more than others, I often fall into giving them all 3 stars. This has happened again with this one by Rebecca Solnit. I have read several of her earlier books and felt the same. In this case, there are some essays here that happened pre or early Covid that feel either dated or not quite ripe for "post" consideration and those were the ones that fell a bit flat to me. Others were more evergreen (climate change) or more current/relevant. As always, some great nuggets in here, though.

I took my sweet time with Solnit's newest collection of acutely timely essays, not because it isn't good, but because in the current state of the world, I wanted—needed—to space these small injections of hope out for as long as I could.

"Even when the rock's at the bottom of the pool, the ripples are still spreading."

No Straight Road Takes You There begins with an essay about a three-hundred-year-old violin, and ends with one about a prisoner with a dream of seeing the ocean and visiting his mother's grave. A large variety of topics are covered in between, but the one Solnit returns to time and again is the climate crisis: At a time when every news headline feeds the vision of a bleak, uncertain future, Solnit is an optimistic realist, and makes a case for the fact that uncertainty holds potential; that not all is yet lost; that it's worth to dream of and fight for a better world.

"...the future is not as it is so often spoken of—as a place that already exists, toward which we are trudging—but as a place that we are creating with what we do and how we do it (or don't) in the present. (...) Hope is that recognition and a commitment to the pursuit of the better possibilities within the spaciousness of the unknown, the not yet created."

The thread connecting these essays is Solnit's plea to stop, zoom out, and look at the bigger picture, especially when things seem hopeless. Change is the only constant, but more often than not, it isn't one big event; it happens slowly, incrementally, and is often only noticeable when you take a moment to look back at where we started out.

As ever, her writing is engaging and accessible with flashes of poetic beauty, and her commentary sharp, nuanced, and compassionate; Solnit has a uniquely refreshing way of acknowledging all the ways in which the world sucks, while also leaving room for hope, reminding us of how far we have come, and how much further we can go—challenging work lies ahead, but not impossible work. In these bleak times, that's a comforting, inspiring thought.

A range of essays and/or articles that also date back to the years just prior to the pandemic or the war in Ukraine, so while they are generally interesting and certainly still valid, they most of the time, bear the brunt of time. Moreover, they are sometimes so U.S.-centered, that they bore me, because the details of the stories she tells, are not that well known to overseas audiences.

Una serie di saggi e/o articoli che risalgono anche agli anni appena precedenti alla pandemia o alla guerra in Ucraina, quindi, anche se in generale sono interessanti e sicuramente ancora validi, accusano il piú delle volte, il peso del tempo. Inoltre a volte sono talmente U.S. centered, che mi annoiano perché i dettagli delle storie che racconta, non sono poi cosí noti al pubblico di oltre oceano.

I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

Rebecca Solnit will be remembered for her works. They will sit alongside Mary Wollstonecraft, Betty Friedan and Bell Hooks.

This is a collection of essays about how we as a society solve large problems. From Discrimination to sexism to the environment no problem has an easy solution. No change happens instantaneously and no matter how deep in the trudges of our moral failings there is always a way out. Coming into 2025 with a feeling of despair this book offers a glimmer of hope that maybe not all is lost. Perhaps we will find a way to get someplace better.

Rebecca Solnit has done it again. My favorite thing about Rebecca's work is that I can rely on her to make me pause and think more seriously about things I encounter regularly but haven't considered on a deeper level. Take string instruments, for example. What a beautiful collection of essays. I love her ability to break my heart and make it grow ten times at the simultaneously. Being able to grow with Rebecca Solnit over the last 15 or so years has been such a privilege, I hope to have that privilege for 15 more years, or more. I'll take as much as she will give me!

Thank you NetGalley and Haymarket, this was a perfect reflection on the last several years of our lives.

Solnit’s latest collection (though she doesn’t like to call it that) contains her expected clear-eyed prose and direct focus on topics that matter to many: climate change, politics, abortion, feminism. The work here is strong and I would particularly like every person in the US to read “Abortion Is an Economic Issue” and really sit with what she has to say. It starts a series of pieces in the second half of the “Revisions” section that are powerful. And for those who shake with climate anxiety, please read “Changing the Climate Story.” I think that piece will make a lot of people breathe a little easier.

Rebecca Solnit has had an enormous impact on the way I see and understand the world. Her books have shaped the way I think, given me language for things I felt but did not know how to express. This latest collection of essays is everything I thought - and hoped - it would be. She dissects our current situation and provides thoughtful, compassionate, and most importantly, hopeful commentary. Look, I am the first to admit this is not an unbiased review. I am a huge fan. But there is a reason I am such a fan. Solnit has a way of examining and describing the world which acknowledges all the awfulness but leaves room for wonder and joy too. Thank you to the author, Haymarket Books, and NetGalley for the eARC.

[a copy of this book was provided to me by the published from netgalley. thank you!]

4.5⭐️

a timely and thoughtful collection of essays from rebecca solnit. i love solnit’s work, and this was just as good as her previous publications

3.5 Stars

While some essays were stronger than others, overall this was a great compilation of essays covering the past few years and focusing on feminism, climate change, and other social issues.

I always appreciate Rebecca Solnit's essays, and these were no different. This is a collection of essays that Solnit wrote for different publications over the past few years. Most of them are still acutely relevant today, though some of the information or commentary has been overtaken by recent events. I would have liked it if the author could have updated some of the pieces, but they are still plenty interesting as they are.

The collection mostly revolves around the themes of climate change, feminism, and politics, with topics ranging from renewable energy to abortion laws to the left/right divide in American politics. The variety of the topics sometimes gave me a little whiplash as I moved between the essays, but on the whole they are united by a sense of addressing some of the most urgent topics of our time.

Solnit doesn't shy away from tackling systemic problems head-on, breaking down the topics in a comprehensible, accessible manner. The general tone of the essays, however, is not as despairing as one might think, but rather optimism-in-spite-of-everything. Solnit emphasizes the dangers of despair and nihilism, and convincingly makes the case that societies won't change if their people lose hope that change is possible. She calls out a lack of imagination in the general population, and encourages us to dream bigger.

Ultimately, there seem to be three big takeaways from these essays: 1) We need to believe that a better world is possible 2) and can be realized through incremental changes 3) if we emphasize collective activity over individual responsibility. That's a message I can very much get behind. I would certainly recommend this collection.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

The clarity and hope that exist in these essays realistically portray what is going on in this country, but also tell the stories of the actions so many people are taking to counteract the darkness. This is not an easy read, but I consider it to be essential. I only wish that some of the author's more recent essays that appear in her newsletter Meditations in an Emergency could be included as well. Recommended reading for all Americans.

The latest from activist and bestselling author Rebecca Solnit is a powerful and timely collection of essays focused on the unpredictability and uncertainty of life and learning to embrace change and hope despite – or perhaps because of – it. In her signature lyrically beautiful and probing prose, Solnit encourages reflection, engagement, intentional action, reevaluation and reimagination when grappling with the often enraging challenges of modern life, such as climate change, justice, politics and power. She reminds us to learn lessons from the past while playing the long game for a just, healthy, liberated and feminist future.

Solnit is a great writer, a writers' writer in the sense where a writer is not just someone who can express ideas in writing but someone for whom writing is a well-honed craft, someone who appreciates and strives for excellence in the use of language, someone not shy about constructing beautiful, complex sentences, knowing (and acknowledging openly) that this makes her writing more complex, aimed at readers willing to make the effort to follow along for the rewards of an enjoyable, smooth, unhindered flow of words, nodding and smiling when encountering a good analogy or a clever point poignantly made. In an age when such writing and such reading have become rare, this alone—the craftsmanship and style of this book—warrants a 5-star review.
The content is par for the course in Solnit's writing, which may be a very good thing for some, and exasperating for others. This, too, is the mark of good writing: it serves a purpose and incites opinions, which is why, despite being in the "exasperated" group, I nonetheless enjoyed the read and did not find my disagreement with some of its premises and conclusions reason to rate the book any lower. While it did not leave me hopeful or inspired (which I suspect was the author's hope). Instead, I found myself engaged in an ongoing imaginary Socratic dialog with the author, which I enjoyed very much.

This is Rebecca Solnit at her very best. Sharp, searing prose and crystalline insight. This is the book the world needs most in 2025. It is a beautiful reminder that we can endeavour to do more than merely survive in tumultuous times - we can use these as an opportunity to re-imagine what is possible and remember the beauty of shared humanity.

I look forward to sharing this work with my loved ones when it comes out and have recommended it as a must-read to my audience.

Sincere thank you to NetGalley and Haymarket Books for this eARC prior to publication.

Rebecca Solnit’s No Straight Road Takes You There is a thought-provoking essay collection that delves into some of the most urgent issues of our time. Solnit continues to impress with her ability to blend fact, personal reflection, and social critique into a seamless narrative. Through her distinct voice, she examines a polarized political landscape, underscoring the importance of compromise and collaboration in maintaining a functional democracy.

The essays in this collection offer much more than just analysis—they invite readers to question their perceptions and gain a deeper understanding of the world around them. Solnit's insights are both enlightening and thought-provoking, urging us to reevaluate our assumptions and consider multiple perspectives. Although the repeated focus on climate change in several essays can feel somewhat repetitive, it’s hard to overlook the magnitude of the issue, and Solnit’s passionate call to action is undeniably important.

The collection speaks to anyone with a desire to learn more about the world’s challenges, be it through the lens of human rights, environmental justice, or politics. Solnit’s writing forces readers to confront reality that we usually encounter in daily life. There’s an underlying current of hope present in all of her writing—reminding us that even in bleak moments, change is possible.

One of the most striking aspects of Solnit’s work is her ability to see the big picture, reminding readers that “change is our only constant.” She encourages us to reflect on history to better understand the future. This broader perspective is especially comforting now. Solnit’s reflections on this point offer a glimmer of hope for the year ahead.

The collection opens with an essay about a centuries-old violin, linking it to larger themes of forests, and climate. From there, it moves through various subjects, concluding with a moving piece about a prisoner longing to see the ocean. Solnit successfully bridges the political with the literary, offering not just facts, but a reimagining of what it means to be engaged with the world. Through her essays, she challenges us to reconsider the stories we’ve inherited and to reframe them in ways that promote growth, justice, and equality.

In No Straight Road Takes You There, Solnit asks us to embrace uncertainty, imperfection, and the unpredictability of our shared future. Her message is clear: while the road ahead may be unclear, it’s up to each of us to shape it.#haymarketbooks #rebeccasolnit #nostraightroadtakesyouthere

Solnit deftly reminds us that modern society has made huge progress toward a more equitable and just future despite present backtracking. Whether reflecting on climate change, feminism, civil rights, or other salient issues, she illuminates a history that reveals the possibilities—even likelihood—of a better future. It can often feel that if we're not talking about the latest headlines, what we're talking about is irrelevant. But Solnit's essays, timely as they once were, are now timeless. Or perhaps, timeful? They remind us of past successes while pointing to the many successes yet to come if only we take a long-term view.

Rebecca Solnit has a sharp mind and I enjoy reading what she has to say about the world as it is at any given moment—this collection of essays was no exception. What I took most from the pages of No Straight Road Takes You There was a reminder that when things feel especially bleak (such as now, presumably), to zoom out and remember that change does happen. Shocking change that would’ve once never seemed possible. In fact, change is our only constant. Even when it seems that nothing could ever go right again, zoom out. That’s a comforting thought to take into the new year.