Where the Desert Meets the Sea: A Trader in the Land of the Seri Indians

by David Yetman, Chris Sternberg (Illustrator), Jim Hills (Photographer)

Book by Yetman, David

Genres: History, Nonfiction

177 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1993

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this. Yes, he starts as just an American professor and a trader, but he visits the Seri Indians for decades and learns a lot about their culture. There are chapters about specific elders who have since passed on, and Yetman remarks on how they are carrying on Seri culture and will soon be gone, so he tries to preserve their stories. He went on to host a PBS series about the Americas and another local series about the Sonoran Desert and become somewhat of a scholar and a desert preservationist (this is not in the book but easily found online). I found it interesting to read this work, which is the first from a man who later became enamored with the Desert and indigenous cultures and basically spent his life documenting them. The book itself is a collection of stories about different Seri cultural attitudes, individuals, trips the author took, and other stories and topics that give insight into their culture. I like that Yetman does not presume to know what a lot of Seri reactions/attitudes mean, where they originate. If he doesn't know, he will relate a story that he found played out interestingly and leave it open ended... rather than presuming to know why the Seris would react like they did. By doing this, it kind of makes the reader interested too and sparks curiosity. I think this is a great way to write, because try as we might, no one can ever really presume to understand another culture completely, as it will always be understood in terms of the writer's own culture and perception first. At the same time, I loved the stories about the colorful characters he portrayed and their images will stay with me. Anyway, interesting book about a part of the world and indigenous group I knew little about.

[Lungstrum Smalls · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would say I "learned" a lot from this book, but I'm wary of trusting the information in any book that's so unscientific in its assertions. Yetman is not an anthropologist, which would be just fine if he were at least more aware of his own position and privilege. But he seems to fancy himself a sort of adventurer-trader turned pseudo-anthropologist. All too often he seems to mistake exploitation for friendship and subjective observations for cultural analysis. He tries to make up for his shortcomings with ironic little jokes about "gringos" but most of them feel like attempts to distance himself from the cultural genocide in which he is complicit.

Despite all that, Yetman clearly cares about the people, culture, and geography of the region. He wrote this book from that place of love, I think, and with a sincere desire to see the people keep a hold of their traditional culture. If only that were enough.

I originally picked up this book because it's one of the few things I can find published about Desemboque. While the book leaves a lot to be desired, it's still better than nothing for those who want to learn a bit about this part of the Baja coast and the Seri people who live there.

[Patsy]

O

[Don Diego · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this happy-go-lucky memoir before I went on an organized camping trip to Isla Tiburon, homeland of the Seris. I really enjoyed both the trip and this book.