Dispatches From The Rust Belt: The Best of Belt Magazine

by Anne Trubek (editor), Richey Piiparinen (editor)

A print anthology of our favorite pieces from Belt Magazine’s first year. Dispatches From the Rust Belt includes stories about Great Lakes waterfronts, faux-authentic restaurants in Detroit, and the history of Cleveland’s Chief Wahoo. Experienced journalists who recognized early on the importance of what we are doing, such as Gordon Young-- whose cautionary tale “Attention Would-Be Urban Homesteaders: Think Before You Buy” is a must-read for anyone seduced by the promise of a Rust Belt fixer-upper-- share these pages with new writers who found a voice with us, such as Amanda Shaffer, whose “Busing: A White Girl's Tale” received national recognition. Taken as a whole, Dispatches expands our map of the Rust Belt, giving shape and voice to its history, its culture, its economy, and its future.

Contributors include Jacqueline Marino, Edward McClelland, Dan McGraw, Laura Putre, Brad Ricca, Erick Trickey, and others.

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Anne Trubek is the author of A Skeptic's Guide To Writers' Houses and co-editor of Rust Belt Chic: The Cleveland Anthology. She has written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, Wired and numerous other publications.

Reviews

[Michael Van Kerckhove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Catching up on some unread books on my shelf here. I picked this gem up at the Voices of the Midwest Fest in 2015, along with Belt's Detroit Anthology (which I read right away). My 5 stars are for the content of the book but also for all the awesome work that Belt has done since then, both online and in print. I am proud to be a part of both as I have work in the recent Chicago Anthology and online at beltmag.com/on-the-rouge.

This collection serves as a great primer for Belt's first year and offers wonderful history lessons and food for thought. I particularly enjoyed the pieces on the history of Rust Belt alt-weeklies and Mansfield Frazier's Cleveland vineyard (and 5 years on, I hope it's thriving....)

I'm looking forward to checking out new releases and online stories in the New Year.

[Dustin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Focuses mostly on Cleveland, but overall a good variety of essays and reporting

Dustin Renwick
Author, Beyond the Gray Leaf

[Bob Hand · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wish I had read this 10 years ago. Lots of content relevant to what rust belt cities are trying to/hoping to accomplish through urbanism and renewal. Just acknowledging that there -are- stories from the rust belt is (was) such a big step.

[Roger Bradbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughtful articles about what once was and what should be now.