Felton, R. Todd 1969-

PERSONAL:

Born 1969, in HI. Hobbies and other interests: Literary travel, skiing, backpacking, education.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Amherst, MA. E-mail—rtfelton@earthlink.net.

CAREER:

Writer, editor, and photographer. Has taught English and served as the director of a writing center.

WRITINGS:

A Journey into the Transcendentalists' New England ("ArtPlace" series), Roaring Forties Press (Berkeley, CA), 2006.

A Journey into Ireland's Literary Revival ("ArtPlace" series), Roaring Forties Press (Berkeley, CA), 2007.

Author of blog Idiot's Delight. Columnist for Automotive Traveler.

SIDELIGHTS:

Writer and photographer R. Todd Felton is the author of the well-received travel guide A Journey into the Transcendentalists' New England. In the work, Felton examines the historical and social impact of Transcendentalism by profiling such figures as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Amos Bronson Alcott, Henry David Thoreau, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. "There is much here for any reader, whether one beginning a journey into the writing of the Transcendentalists or an experienced scholar," wrote American Transcendentalism Web site contributor Ann M. Woodlief. "The descriptions of their thought and works are clear and enlightening." Felton also explores the region in Massachusetts where the writers lived, offering descriptions of Boston, Concord, Salem, Brook Farm, and Walden Pond. "Many of the buildings and locations associated with the movement still exist," remarked Carl Gauze on the Ink 19 Web site, "and Felton's research not only highlights their location but the details of how they came to be and who owned what over the years." According to a contributor in the New England Watershed, "What Felton does capture beautifully is the hustle and bustle of mid-19th century New England life in certain pulsating communities, places where commerce included not only manufacturing and trade but also educational innovation and social reform. A Journey into the Transcendentalists' New England immerses a reader in a time and place where intellectual debate was every bit as important as the Gross National Product."

In a later work, A Journey into Ireland's Literary Revival, Felton looks at W.B. Yeats, John Millington Synge, Sean O'Casey, and Lady Gregory, among other writers, as well as the locales that stimulated their imaginations, including Dublin, Galway, and the Aran Islands.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Library Journal, June 1, 2006, Rita Simmons, review of A Journey into the Transcendentalists' New England, p. 140.

New England Watershed, May-June, 2006, review of A Journey into the Transcendentalists' New England.

ONLINE

American Transcendentalism,http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/ (July 28, 2007), Ann M. Woodlief, review of A Journey into the Transcendentalists' New England.

Ink 19,http://www.ink19.com/ (July 28, 2007), Carl Gauze, review of A Journey into the Transcendentalists' New England.

Robert Todd Felton Home Page,http://www.rtfelton.com (July 1, 2007).