Williams, Terry Tempest. Red; passion and patience in the desert.Random House, Vintage. 271p. map, c2001. 0-375-72518-0. $13,00. The red rock country of the Southwest. with its baroque landscapes and and climate. incites a passionate response in many visitors. Terry Tempest Williams Terry Tempest Williams (born 1955), is an American author, naturalist, and environmental activist. The main subject of her writings is the deserts of the American West. She is considered an ecologist and a naturalist, but writes about other issues as well, including issues of , a Utah native, has this land in her blood, heart, and soul. This compilation of short pieces communicates to the rest of us the unique value of this land and, despite its harsh and unforgiving aspects, its tender fragility. The last time the Four Corners was in the national news, President Clinton declared the Grand Staircase-Escalante Wilderness a national monument national monument In the U.S., any of numerous areas reserved by the federal government for the protection of objects or places of historical, scientific, or prehistoric interest. , to howls of protest from groups who wanted the land available for uses other than recreation and preservation. One of the purposes of the current book is to promote the preservation of a much wider swath of slick rock country across southern Utah. Although the book includes the text of the proposed act of Congress and the addresses of almost two dozen advocacy groups, the heart of Williams's approach is personal, idiosyncratic id·i·o·syn·cra·sy n. pl. id·i·o·syn·cra·sies 1. A structural or behavioral characteristic peculiar to an individual or group. 2. A physiological or temperamental peculiarity. 3. , and, as she emphasizes, erotic. She loves this land whose wildness puts her in touch with her most primal nature. To involve us in the land, she shares Coyote stories from Native American tradition, incidents from her own life, and appreciations of older writers on the environment. especially Mary Austin, author of The Land of Little Rain (1903), and Aldo Leopold Aldo Leopold (January 11, 1887 - April 21, 1948) was a United States ecologist, forester, and environmentalist. He was influential in the development of modern environmental ethics and in the movement for wilderness preservation. , author of Sand County Almanac almanac, originally, a calendar with notations of astronomical and other data. Almanacs have been known in simple form almost since the invention of writing, for they served to record religious feasts, seasonal changes, and the like. (1943). But the heart of the book is the ecstatic, ruminative ru·mi·nate v. ru·mi·nat·ed, ru·mi·nat·ing, ru·mi·nates v.intr. 1. To turn a matter over and over in the mind. 2. To chew cud. v.tr. , urgent appreciations of the land she knows so well. For readers who know the red rock country, her words will spark visual and visceral memories. For those not familiar with the place, Williams hopes to engender a longing to preserve it for future generations. Michael P. Healy, English Teacher, Wood River H.S., Hailey, ID |
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