Stone Desert: A Naturalist's Exploration of Canyonlands National Park

by Craig Childs

1995 EarthTales Press. Wraps are clean and bright but show slight signs of edge/shelf wear. Spine is uncreased. Page 59 has a very small smudge along right side but otherwise, pages are free of marks, underlines or highlights. Beautifully written and illustrated. Proceeds benefit Oro Valley AZ Public Library.

Genres: Nature, Nonfiction, Natural History

201 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1995

About the author

CRAIG CHILDS is a commentator for NPR's Morning Edition, and his work has appeared in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Men's Journal, Outside, The Sun, and Orion. He has won numerous awards including the 2011 Ellen Meloy Desert Writers Award, 2008 Rowell Award for the Art of Adventure, the 2007 Sigurd Olson Nature Writing Award, and the 2003 Spirit of the West Award for his body of work.

Reviews

[litost · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I enjoyed this account of Child’s winter roaming in Canyonlands National Park in 1993-94. It was his first book and the writing is not yet refined, I was discouraged by the first chapter, but glad that I persevered as he roams around my favourite part of the world. Some of his descriptions put me right there. He goes through the different sections of Canyonlands, but it’s not a guidebook as he goes places I wouldn’t - the Maze - and doesn’t give enough info to recreate his trips. I read the re-released edition which includes his original journal, and though I didn’t try to read his cursive, I enjoyed his sketches of desert plants and landscape.

[Rob Melich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent set of detailed essays. Geology and fauna explanations are worth the read.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Snow was melting off the rock, out there somewhere, like secrets. My dream of full water pockets in the white stone, cupped in desert varnish, would be reborn. I shifted, closed myself in, and listened to snow touch the earth. Millions of snowflakes nearly hummed."

An well written and informative guide to hiking the Canyonlands National Park. I'm no hiker, but after reading this book I feel like packing my sleeping bag and some beef jerky and going camping in the winter for a day or two.

[Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author spent a winter in Canyonlands and offers this part-journal and part-travel guide synopsis of the whole experience.