Book Synopsis

Two volumes of fiction from the National Book Award-winning author of Arctic Dreams: "Lopez feels a deep spiritual connection to the natural world." --San Francisco Chronicle

To National Book Award-winning author Barry Lopez, the desert and the river are landscapes alive with poetry, mystery, seduction, and enchantment. In these two works of fiction, the narrator responds viscerally and emotionally to their moods and changes, their secrets and silences, and their unique power. Desert Notes portrays the mystical power of an American desert, and the reflections it sparks in the characters who travel there. River Notes, a companion piece, celebrates the wild life forces of a river, calling readers to think deeply on identity and about the hopefulness of their onward journeys, with a lyrical collection of memories, stories, and dreams. From an evocative tale of finding a hot spring in a desert to a meditation on the thoughts and dreams of herons, Lopez offers enthralling stories that enable us to see and feel the rhythms of the wilderness. These sojourns bring readers a specific sense of the darkness, light, and resolve that we encounter within ourselves when away from home.

Review Quotes

"A powerful storyteller." --Margaret Atwood
"Lopez feels a deep spiritual connection to the natural world." --San Francisco Chronicle
"Lopez has magic in his words." --Minneapolis Star-Tribune
"Lopez succeeds in awakening our fleeting yearning and hidden feelings." --Denver Post
"[His] stories' fierce beauty lingers in the mind's eye like a foreign sunset." --The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

About the Author

Barry Lopez (1945-2020) was the author of thirteen books of essays, short stories, and nonfiction. He was a recipient of the National Book Award, the Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and numerous other literary and cultural honors and awards. His highly acclaimed books include ArcticDreams, Winter Count, and Of Wolves and Men, for which he received the John Burroughs and Christopher medals. He lived in western Oregon.