Desert Hawk Books

 

Barren, Wild, and Worthless
Living in the Chihuahuan Desert

Susan J. Tweit

 

203 pages
5.5" x 8"

Paperback

Quantity: $17.95 & S/H

 

Appearing barren and most definitely wild, the Chihuahuan Desert of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States may look worthless to some, but for Susan Tweit it is an inspiration. In this collection of seven elegant personal essays, she explores undiscovered facets of this seemingly hostile environment. With eloquence, passion, and insight, she describes and reflects on the relationship between the land, history, and people and makes this underappreciated region less barren for those who would share her journeys.

"A collection of insightful essays . . . Here are stories of conditions often out of balance, mostly without visible remedy—short-sighted urban renewal, the legacy of over-grazing, aquifer depletion, the loss of an old church and with it the gathering place of a whole community. . . . Those interested in the history and ecology of the region will want to pick it up, as well as those looking for good contemporary essay writing about the West." —The New Mexican

"There's often little to this terrain, but to the author it's a beautiful landscape bursting with stories and wildlife, with big cities and small chunks of quietness found in few other places on earth. Tweit's essays have a pleasant style that combines history with personal discovery." —Book Talk

"Sense of place is measured by one's awareness of the landscape and the extent to which it dictates thought and behavior. Barren, Wild, and Worthless dramatizes the aspirations, needs, and functional rhythms of life that are revealed and defined by this seventh sense." —Southwestern American Literature

"Through her stories and the stories inherent in the land, we come not only to fell this country, but to believe in its dry, bony presence as a place of miracles and wild wisdom. She reminds us of the magic of biology through her keen eyes and bright mind." —Terry Tempest Williams

"An unflinching book that gives dignity to the lost and disappeared, full of living tributes to the ancestors: animal, plant, and mineral. Barren, Wild, and Worthless carries with it words to cool and fortify us as we stumble forward on that unsure road where we, like the spadefoot toad, are always waiting for the rain. It is a magical and beautiful book." —Denise Chavez

Former field ecologist Susan J. Tweit is the award-winning author of seven books, including Meet the Wild Southwest: Land of Hoodoos and Gila Monsters and most recently Seasons on the Pacific Coast: A Naturalist's Notebook. She is a member of Women Writing the West and lives in Salida, Colorado.