Reviews with content warning for Racism - Desert Solitaire

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey

14 reviews

kaelynm's review against another edition

Completely turned off after the second part of “Cowboys Vs. Indians”, when he tried to explain that genocide of indigenous people was a good thing for them and considered the Navajo “red skinned blacks” and that they had to be more like a white man to build a better future for themselves. Disappointed

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cynireads's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective slow-paced

3.25

To be honest Abbey is a world-class butthole of a person by today’s standards. I finished it because although I disagreed with virtually every social/political point he espoused, he is a spectacular writer when it comes to writing about the Utah desert.

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sylviet's review against another edition

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adventurous informative reflective medium-paced

2.0

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spacebee's review against another edition

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adventurous funny informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

2.0

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anxiousplanter's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective slow-paced

2.5

There were parts that were beautifully written, but other parts that were openly racist and difficult to get through. I almost stopped reading about a third of the way through.

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troyb3's review against another edition

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adventurous dark reflective slow-paced

2.5

It took a lot of effort to get through Desert Solitaire, due in large part to his extremely racist chapter early on in the book that discusses the status of Native Americans in the southwest, and the United States. His call for sterilization was extremely frightening, and his inability to think about what affects Native Americans’ place in the country was dumbfounding and makes no sense. The reward for sticking with the book wasn’t enough.

Abbeys tale of his summer in Arches was sometimes puzzling—he laments tourists harming the environment but talks about killing an animal for no reason and rolling tires into the Grand Canyon. He hates that people don’t see nature how he does, but never attempts to engage with tourists to show them what he sees. For how steadfastly he seems to believe certain things, he sometimes forgets to look at the man in the mirror. He also seems to have an extremely low view of those who aren’t as “pure” an outdoorsperson as he is, seeming to forget that giving people opportunities to interact with nature and wilderness can help them see the value of its conservation and protection. Instead, he advocates for limiting its access, especially to disabled people, something he mentions several times.

There were some positives—he does recognize the havoc cars wreak on the environment within parks, something that’s just gotten worse since his writing. He also is able to describe the beauty of the southwest and paint a vivid picture of the adventures he has in the desert. However, his negative tone, racist and crotchety worldview, dismissal of tourists and others that aren’t *him* and the repetitiveness of the book don’t make for an enjoyable read.

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emcsquared's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective relaxing slow-paced

4.5

Removed half a star because Abbey had a staggering lack of self awareness at times (whining about tourists and trash but rolling a tire into the grand canyon, complaining about roads and cars but driving himself all around the greater Utah area in a government vehicle, writing a whole chapter on the sad state of native Americans with zero mention of why they have so many problems--white men committed genocide on their populations, etc).

But other than him being a Racist and Sexist White Man of a Certain Age, the book is gorgeous. You will be transported. I read this after 4-5 trips to Utah in the Moab/Arches/Canyonlands/Lake Powell areas and i loved visualizing all the places i love so well and what they were like decades ago before significant development. Arches, exploring canyons, rock scrambling, floating the Colorado past Bullfrog, and in the very last chapter they go to the Maze, one place i haven't been--ugh, so good. If you miss Utah, read this book. If you don't life Utah yet, read this book and get there.

I'll be looking for similar works next, but without the obnoxious narrator. Going to try pilgrim at tinker Creek again, then make for Terry Tempest Williams.

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sunn_bleach's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.25

An American classic in nature writing - with all the implications of latent sexism and racism that accompanies a “classic” written by a middle aged white man in the sixties. Still, that’s part of the importance and even charm - this book is a study in contradiction, all the more because Abbey is intensely self-aware. But is that awareness enough? Abbey would probably say no, as his college self rolls a tire into the Grand Canyon.

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jadziaaudrey's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny reflective slow-paced

2.5

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paulypokey's review against another edition

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4.75

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