What is the state of reading in Utah?
It starts by reading the land. Start with “The Broken Land: Adventures in Great Basin Geology“, by Frank DeCourten, paired with the beautifully written and photographed by Stephen Trimble “The Sagebrush Ocean: A Natural History of the Great Basin.“For the high desert that is a symbol of Utah’s national parks, consult “The Geology of the Parks, Monuments and Wildlands of Southern Utah,» by Robert Fillmore. And for a more personal feel of Arches and Canyonlands, “Blow Sand In His Soul: Bates Wilson, The Heart of Canyonlands,” by Jen Jackson Quintano, is a vivid biography of Wilson, who championed their protection. “A Naturalist’s Guide to Canyon Country,” by David B. Williams, is an indispensable companion, with more than 270 plants and animals identified and described in their ecological communities.
Native voices are loud and diverse in Utah. Ute historian Forrest S. Cuch’s excellent “ONE History of the American Indians of Utah» features the eight federally recognized tribal nations located in the state. “Navajo Mountain and Rainbow Bridge Religion,” by Karl W. Luckert, provides transcriptions of oral histories made by Diné elders who shared traditional knowledge related to the Rainbow Bridge, one of the largest sandstone arches in the world, accessible by boat on Lake Powell. “Edge of Morning: Native Voices Speak for the Bears Ears,” edited by Jacqueline Keeler, is a reminder of why these sacred lands matter to indigenous communities. It features voices such as Regina Lopez Whiteskunk, Willie Grayeyes and Jonah Yellowman. Stacie Shannon Denetsosie’s impressive debut collection, “The Missing Morningstar: And Other Stories,” recently published, yes rave reviews.
What books can lead to a desert state?
Start with the classics like “Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness,” by Edward Abbey, an anti-memoir book about wildness set in Arches National Park during Abbey’s years as a ranger there. Published in 1968, it can be seen as Thorovianism’s counterpoint to the turmoil surrounding the Vietnam War. Then, for a novel with a bent towards sabotage, Abbey’s “The Monkey Wrench Gang” it can inspire you — and it did the environmental group Earth First;! — to reimagine the Colorado River without Glen Canyon Dam. If you find Abbey’s politics problematic, I recommend the insolence “Desert Cabal: A New Season in the Wilderness”, by Amy Irvine.
“The Last Rogue’s Waltz: Beauty and Violence in the Desert Southwest” and “The Anthropology of Turquoise: Reflections on Desert, Sea, Stone and Sky.” by Ellen Meloy, are sharp-edged works with fast-paced narrative that use cultural tensions between land and an extraction policy—uranium, oil and gas, or coal—to complicate the landscape. Craig Childs’ elegant exploration of archeology in “House of Rain: Tracking a vanished civilization in the American SouthwestIt takes the reader back in time to pre-Pueblo cultures whose pictographs and petroglyphs tell stories on stones near the rocks they left behind. And his book “The secret knowledge of waterIt couldn’t be more familiar to our current hyper-drought.
What books can feed a Mormon state of mind?
Two biographies create a foundation for understanding The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling,“by Richard Lyman Bushman and “Brigham Young: Pioneer Prophet,” by John G. Turner. Both authors present these iconic figures in human terms. Smith’s charisma as a mystic and Young’s as a visionary pragmatist led the “saints” to a theology of westward expansion only to find they had a salt desert to tame. Two of my other favorite Mormon books are Maurine Whipple’s novel “Joshua the Giant” and the autobiography of Annie Clark Tanner”A Mormon Mother.” Both are harsh and tender comments on how patriarchy and polygamy shape women’s lives as they endure heartbreak and deepen their spiritual strength. “Mormon country” and “Recap,” by Wallace Stegner, are wise works of historical intelligence, with rich renderings of post-settlement Salt Lake City. And Jonathan T. Bailey “When I Was Red Clay: A Journey of Identity, Healing and Wonder“ is a courageous memoir about growing up gay in a rural Mormon community and avoiding erasure by finding refuge in the wilderness.