The Best American Travel Writing 2002

A native of Georgia, Frances Mayes received a B.A. from the University of Florida and an M.A. from San Francisco State University. She is a creative writing professor at San Francisco State University. Mayes' memoir "Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy," about buying and restoring an abandoned villa in Cortona, was a national best seller in show more 1996. It became the basis of a feature film of the same name in 2003 starring Diane Lane. In addition her travel writing, Frances Mayes is the author of six books of poetry and is a respected essayist and gourmet cook. Frances' title Under Magnolia is a 2015 New York Times bestseller. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Jason Wilson is the author of Boozehound and The Cider Revival, and the series editor of The Best American Travel Writing. A regular contributor to the Washington Post, he has written for the New York Times, the New Yorker, the San Francisco Chronicle, AFAR Preservation, and many other magazines and newspapers.