Topical Guide 19

Mark Dorset

Writer at Work, The

     The date at the end of the preface to “My Mother Takes a Tumble” is April 2, 1982. Kraft’s practice is to date Peter’s prefaces with the date of the last revision of the text. However, “last revision” sometimes means the last revision to his last draft before submitting the work for publication and sometimes means the last revision to the last proof copy of the work if revisions in proof are substantial.

     In 1982 the Krafts were living in Newburyport, Massachusetts. They had moved there in 1980. Newburyport is a seacoast town. Here is a “bird’s eye view” of Newburyport as it was sometime between 1858 and 1900, approximately eighty-two years before Kraft wrote “My Mother Takes a Tumble” there.

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. "Birds-eye view of Newburyport." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1850 - 1930.

     This is an advertisement for the Xerox 850 word processor. Kraft wrote “My Mother Takes a Tumble” on one of these.

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