05/04/20

Passionate, though frequently irreverent, Abbey presents a thought-provoking, philosophical soliloquy of his love for the American Southwest desert. While I both liked and disliked this book, I am glad I read it. It is good to be presented ideas that challenge the normal way of thinking, though I might not always like or accept them. ( )

I’ve heard of Edward Abbey, and am aware of The Monkeywrench Gang, but had read none of his work. Desert Solitaire takes place near Moab, Utah in the Arches and Canyonlands national parks. Maybe it’s because I’ve spent so much time there in the last few years, but this book sang to me. It’s like a lumberjack reciting poetry. Abbey’s incredible description and wry sense of humor read like a best seller today, rather than a book published in 1968. Highly recommend. ( )

A book that sat on my 'to read list' for many years. I've read other works of Edward Abbey, this book still holds a great deal of relevance. Having lived in the American West for 30 years now, the shifting environment with more wildfires, drier conditions and expanding population shifts to the west are points that Abbey made in this book in the 1960s. His purpose-driven life in the natural environment, and the understanding of human impact on the environment are important lessons he wrote about for those for years to come. In many ways, his personal philosophy of tearing out the roads to the national parks rings more true than ever. It should be for people to walk and hike into and explore. It's not for the very young, they don't understand it yet. It's not for the elderly waiting later in life and taking their RV's, they missed the experience. The biggest part of the book that holds so much importance now is the issue of water. The disappearance in the Southwest and boom in population using what's left of the available water. This awareness in the 1960s did not force better solutions to our current problems of water now. ( )

Edward Abbey is quite the crotchety environmentalist, but it comes off as pretty charming in this book. His descriptions of the Utah desert are passionate and reading this book definitely cemented my love for that area and its unique beauty. ( )