Reprint of the original, first published in 1857.

A rare first-hand glimpse into a vanished world of calling cards, chauffeurs and governesses, annual cures at European spas, and biannual shopping and theatre trips to New York during the early 20th century.

Hellmann argues that "new journalism" is a new genre of fiction, one that deals with fact through fable, discovering, constructing and self-consciously exploring meaning beyond our media-constructed reality. He applies his theory to books by Wolfe, Thompson, Mailer and Herr.