The Opal Desert

Explorations of Fantasy and Reality in the American Southwest

By: Peter Wild

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Paperback | 1 November 1999

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236 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
23.5 x 15.88 x 1.27

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The opalescent deserts of the American Southwest have become romantic icons in the public imagination through the words of writers, the images of artists and photographers, and the visual storytelling of filmmakers. In this spirited, personal, beautifully written book, Peter Wild explores the lives and works of sixteen writers whose words have shaped our visions of the opal desert.

Wild begins with Cabeza de Vaca, whose Relación of his desert wanderings sent treasure-hungry Spaniards searching for cities of gold. He goes on to discuss the works of both widely read and lesser-known nineteenth- and twentieth-century authors, including such luminaries as Mary Austin, Joseph Wood Krutch, Edward Abbey, Ann Zwinger, and Charles Bowden. He links all the writers as explorers of one kind or another, searching for tangible or intangible treasures, some finding and some losing their dreams in the opal desert.

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You Can Find This Book In

Non-Fiction Nature & The Natural World The Earth & Natural History in General Earth Sciences, Geography, Environment, Planning Geography Physical Geography & Topography Arid Zones Travel & Holidays Travel Writing Literature, Poetry & Plays History & Criticism of Literature Literary Studies of Fiction

History Regional & National History History of the Americas The Environment Applied Ecology

Acknowledgments
Introduction	p. 1
Cabeza De Vaca: Flaming Entrails, Burning Trees	p. 5
William L. Manly: The Classic Account of Deserta Horribilis	p. 19
J. Ross Browne and Samuel W. Cozzens: Happy Travelers through Lost Lands	p. 35
Charles F. Lummis: The Showman with the Shining Right Hand	p. 48
Mary Austin: Beauty, Madness, Death, and God	p. 61
John C. van Dyke and the Desert Aestheticians	p. 75
William T. Hornaday: The Happy Travelers - Part 2	p. 88
John Wesley Powell and William E. Smythe: God Smiles on the Irrigationists	p. 102
J. Smeaton Chase: Our Araby	p. 116
Joseph Wood Krutch: The Pronuba Moth and the Modern Dilemma	p. 131
Edward Abbey: Ned Ludd Arrives on the Desert	p. 146
Ann Zwinger and Charles Bowden: Pondering These Things in Her Heart; Tacitus Flips Out	p. 163
Peter Reyner Banham: Wheeled Voyeur from Overseas	p. 177
Epilogue: The Mountain, a Beetle, and the Thief in the Night	p. 191
Notes	p. 195
Bibliography	p. 203
Index	p. 213
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.

The Opal Desert

Explorations of Fantasy and Reality in the American Southwest

At a Glance

Paperback

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

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