In the 1970s and '80s, before he earned national acclaim for his award-winning novels, Pete Dexter was a newspaper columnist. Every week, in a few hundred words, Dexter cut directly to the heart of the American character at a time of national turmoil and crucial change. With haunting urgency, his columns laid bare the violence, hypocrisy, and desperation he saw on the streets of Philadelphia and in the places he visited across the country. But he reveled, too, in the lighter side of his own life, sharing scenes with the indefatigable Mrs. Dexter, their young daughter, and a series of unforgettable creatures who strayed into their lives. No matter what caught Dexter's eye, it was illuminated by his dark, brilliant humor. Collected here are eighty-two of the best of those spellbinding, finely wrought pieces—with a new preface by the author—assembled by Rob Fleder, editor of the bestselling Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary Book . Paper Trails is searing, heartbreaking, and irresistibly funny, sometimes all at once. As Pete Hamill says in his foreword, these essays "are as good as it ever gets." With authority and a strange grace, Dexter has crafted a powerful true portrait of the underbelly of the American Dream. - Publishers Weekly (starred review) “The author’s true eye for detail makes for easy reading.” - Kirkus Reviews “Lovers of fine writing ought to give a serious consideration to Pete Dexter’s new book.” - Seattle Post-Intelligencer “Paper Trails is a master class in tight, effective writing.” - St. Petersburg Times “A jewel box of muscular writing…” - Denver Post PAPER TRAILS is an indispensable book for anybody interested in journalism or reading a great American writer. It is a chronicle of our times. Dexter is not afraid to shine a light on the dark side of the American Dream, about the devastating violence that is never far from the surface of American life....PAPER TRAILS is as good as journalism can get. - Bookreporter.com “Laugh-out-loud stories…Ideal for... writers and any book lover who appreciates a good story.” - Library Journal “Pete Dexter is a master story teller in all forms... This is the work of a great American writer.” - Michael Connelly Superb...The simple clarity of his prose--precise, stark--is like an Edward Hopper painting...It is American prose, clean and hard....Every journalist in the world should have a copy of PAPER TRAILS...It won’t make anyone a better writer, alas, but, as an example of how good it is possible to be, it may teach humility.” - Otto Penzler, New York Sun Superb...Remarkable...The simple clarity of [Dexter’s] prose is like an Edward Hopper painting. - New York Sun “[A] dark, luscious little book....Paper Trails is a winning book--the sort you keep around because it’s good company and delivers the news in short powerful bursts. The cities are failing us; bad things happen in the night. Whole lives are stuffed onto its pages. But things might turn out in the end, the humor assuages us. In most cases, these sorts of tales would become fish wrap for tomorrow, but Paper Trails proves Dexter’s best work on deadline deserves a longer life.” - Louisville Courier Journal [Dexter’s pieces] read like finely honed short stories....Their spare, haunting scenes echo Hemingway, their insights Faulkner. - Cleveland Plain Dealer PAPER TRAILS is what great newspaper writing is all about. - Washington Post Book World “Compact and illuminating…” - Sunday Oregonian “Paper Trails will stir nostalgia for those who remember a time when newspapers prided themselves on cutting loose, colorful writers…” - Columbus Dispatch “A book full of good reading…” - Rocky Mountain News “[A] literary feat―when Dexter gets going he crawls under the skin and stays there.” - New York Times Book Review In the 1970s and '80s, before he earned national acclaim for his award-winning novels, Pete Dexter was a newspaper columnist. Every week, in a few hundred words, Dexter cut directly to the heart of the American character at a time of national turmoil and crucial change. With haunting urgency, his columns laid bare the violence, hypocrisy, and desperation he saw on the streets of Philadelphia and in the places he visited across the country. But he reveled, too, in the lighter side of his own life, sharing scenes with the indefatigable Mrs. Dexter, their young daughter, and a series of unforgettable creatures who strayed into their lives. No matter what caught Dexter's eye, it was illuminated by his dark, brilliant humor. Collected here are eighty-two of the best of those spellbinding, finely wrought pieces—with a new preface by the author—assembled by Rob Fleder, editor of the bestselling Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary Book . Paper Trails is searing, heartbreaking, and irresistibly funny, sometimes all at once. As Pete Hamill says in his foreword, these essays "are as good as it ever gets." Pete Dexter is the author of the National Book Award-winning no