Books - February 2009
Guest Review by Wolf Schneider
Thriller
Dead or Alive
By Michael McGarrity
Dutton Adult
304 pages, hardcover, $25.95
Santa Fe-based Michael McGarrity, known for his Kevin Kerney mysteries, may be the late Tony Hillerman’s successor as our state’s most successful crime-fiction novelist. In his long string of mysteries set in the remote canyons, dry arroyos, and backcountry cabins of present-day New Mexico, ranchers and sheriffs solve murderous misdoings—and in Dead or Alive, McGarrity’s 12th novel, he shows streaks of Cormac McCarthy’s nihilistic
No Country for Old Men.
McGarrity’s newest is a gritty thriller that follows escaped prisoner Craig Lawson on a killing spree into the ranch country of northeastern New Mexico. Recently retired Santa Fe Police Chief Kevin Kerney now lives in London, where his wife is serving at the American Embassy, and doesn’t enter this tale until page 53, when he gets a phone call: Riley, his partner in a cutting-horse training business, has been gunned down at Kerney’s horse ranch outside Santa Fe. Kerney takes the next plane to Albuquerque, where he joins forces with his half-Apache son, Lieutenant Clayton Istee, to track down the psychotic killer.
This being a thriller, not a mystery, McGarrity skillfully maintains suspense and clarity as he switches the point of view from that of Lawson, the killer, to those of lawmen Kerney and Istee, various victims and kin, and a flashy blonde realtor whose license plate reads “cowgirl.” McGarrity’s own background as a deputy sheriff brings a chilly reality to the rampage.
Though Dead or Alive is a harsh tale that delves into Lawson’s mind as he rapes, tortures, hobbles, and drags around his gunshot victims, it’s enlivened by McGarrity’s sly wit. He tosses in Hummer-driving foreigners, binocular-toting birders, and a house filled with “expensive, oversized Western motif furnishings favored by rich people from somewhere other than the West.” Psychology and plot masterfully intertwine in the forested high country, where boiling clouds and wind-driven rain batter the
cottonwoods and send frightened horses skedaddling.
Dead or Alive is also satisfyingly propelled by the characters’ relationships—especially the wise-guy buddy bond developing between the once-estranged Kerney and Istee. As they cut Lawson’s trail on horseback, with Istee as lead tracker, Kerney points out, “Lawson didn’t do a good job of loading his pack horse. The animal’s left rear hoof print is deeper than the others.” When Istee retorts, “You noticed that, did you,” Kerney counters, “I grew up on a ranch.” One of them has a bad gut, the other a bum leg, but in a dense, overgrown forest with groves of mountain mahogany bushes, where a chestnut horse walks with its head lowered and its teeth bared, these lawmen approach a final confrontation.
Santa Fe-based Wolf Schneider has been editor in chief of the Santa Fean, editor of Living West, and consulting editor of Southwest Art.
Reviews by Ashley M. Biggers
Photography
Free Flow: The Gila River in New Mexico
Photography by Jan Haley, Introduction by M.H. Salmon
University of New Mexico
112 pages, paperback, $27.95
“My time on the Gila has made me understand something about what makes a river a river,” writes photographer Jan Haley in the preface to Free Flow. “Its identity is more than the water it holds, the possibility of water, or even the promise of water. What we see from the perspective of the river is what defines it: the forest, the canyon walls, the desert, the wildlife, the ancient dwellings.”
In this collection, Haley captures both broad views of riverscapes and intimate close-ups of wildflowers, leaves, and berries. The images traverse 200 miles, four seasons, and five ecological zones. Poems by New Mexican Carol Sinor accompany the images, and one of Sinor’s phrases captures the photographs’ essence and the artist’s mindset particularly well: “Eyes open and close / framing images, / humble witness to creations of the river.” But these photographs aren’t just beautiful images to be appreciated: They are a call to action to protect New Mexico’s last wild river.
Travel
The Navajo Nation: A Visitor's Guide
By Patrick & Joan Lavin
Hippocrene Books
283 pages, paperback, $21.95
One of the few guidebooks dedicated to this topic, this Visitor’s Guide collects information about the 25,000-square-mile Navajo Reservation, and includes a good-sized section on the tribe’s history that hits the high points. The second section, organized by itinerary, provides travel essentials about destinations, accommodations, restaurants, and visitor etiquette. A section on language includes conversational phases in Navajo that the Lavins encourage visitors to use: “Navajo speakers will appreciate your interest, chuckle at your efforts, and then will go out of their way to help you pronounce the words.”
The authors provide detailed written directions in lieu of maps—be sure to have a roadmap in hand—and the book isn’t as user-friendly as some big-name tourist guides; the index will be the quickest way to look up your destination. But what The Navajo Nation: A Visitor’s Guide lacks in usability it makes up for in a wealth of current information about traveling in Navajoland.
Uncle Ernie's Guide to Old Time Rodeo
By Ernie Bulow, Illustrations by Ernest Franklin
Sidewinder Publishing
64 pages, hardcover, $14.95
Uncle Ernie Bulow provides a nostalgic view of the golden age of rodeo in a book that will please children and adults alike. It features descriptions and illustrations of two dozen rodeo events, including such little-known ones as wild-cow milking and chicken pulls. Watercolors by award-winning illustrator Ernest Franklin (Navajo) enliven the pages. Both writing and images are determinedly folksy; Bulow’s tone is that of a practiced storyteller as he consistently serves up equally hearty helpings of humor and reverence for the olden days. Bulow lives in Gallup, Franklin in Twin Lakes.
New Mexico Colcha Club: Spanish Colonial Embroidery & the Women Who Saved ItBy Nancy C. Benson
Museum of New Mexico Press
168 pages, paperback, $34.95
The history of Spanish colcha embroidery is far more than a lesson in the appreciation of the craft’s colorful, detailed stitchery; it’s a lesson in Spanish colonial culture and the community of creative, determined women who have preserved the tradition over the centuries. As the book’s jacket aptly
observes, “Into their embroidery they sewed their place in history as independent women, proud of their Hispanic heritage and ability to bring beauty into articles that helped them survive in the often harsh and dangerous environment.”
Author and Sandía Park resident Nancy C. Benson describes the roots of New Mexico’s colcha embroidery tradition; tells the story of Teofila Lujan, who, with the other women of the Arte Antiguo, preserved the dying tradition; relates the growing appreciation of this folk art; and celebrates the craft with beautiful images of the women’s handiwork.
History
Mary Austin and the American West
By Susan Goodman & Carl Dawson
University of California Press
352 pages, hardcover, $29.95
New Mexico literary great Mary Austin was not only a skilled storyteller; she was also a passionate student of and activist for Indian culture and rights, and was influential in bringing the Southwest’s culture into the broader American consciousness. Four chapters of this comprehensive biography are devoted to Austin’s time in Santa Fe, where she spent the last 10 years of her life. During her time here, Austin counted as her friends the leading literary and artistic talents of the day. The authors provide an especially enlightening description of Austin’s relationship with her contemporary and competitor Willa Cather, author of the novel Death Comes for the Archbishop.
During her life, Austin published more than 30 books, including The Land of Journeys’ Ending, her well-known book about New Mexico. This rich, engaging biography explores the complexity of Austin’s life in all the detail it so richly deserves.
The Song of JonahBy Gene Guerin
University of New Mexico Press
232 pages, paperback, $18.95
In this retelling of the biblical story of Jonah, Roman Catholic priest Jon Armitage, falsely accused in a sex scandal, finds himself cast out of his cushy assignment in Fall River, Massachusetts. Exiled to the remote northeastern New Mexican parish of Nuevo Niños (this tale’s metaphorical whale), where the priests who have preceded him met misfortune after misfortune, he
dreads a similar fate. Instead, the pious Father Jon renews his devotion to his calling.
In this fast-moving novel, Gene Guerin provides thoughtful insights into the workings of the Church and small-town life in rural New Mexico. Born and raised in Las Vegas, New Mexico, Guerin now lives in Denver. He won the Premio Aztlán Award for Emerging Hispanic Writers for his first novel, Cottonwood Saints (UNM Press, 2005).
Ecology
A Field Guide to the Plants and Animals of the Middle
Rio Grande Bosque
By Jean-Luc E. Cartron, David C. Lightfoot, Jane E. Mygatt, Sandra L. Brantley, Timothy K. Lowrey
Unviersity of New Mexico Press
384 pages, paperback, $21.95
Riparian (riverside) habitats cover less than two percent of the landscape of the American Southwest, yet are some of the most diverse ecosystems in this area. This reference work features descriptions of, and listings of prime viewing times for, more than 700 species of plants and animals found in the bosque (riverside forest) along the Río Grande. It begins with a brief overview of areas to visit along this section of the river, which stretches southward from Cochiti Dam to Elephant Butte Lake, and continues with descriptions of the settings and habitats visitors will find. A Field Guide is a user-friendly, informative tool for anyone venturing into the bosque.
Photography
Photography New Mexico
By Thomas F. Barrow, Kristin Barendsen, Stuart Ashman
Fresco Fine Art Publications
284 pages, hardcover, $95
From Ansel Adams to Edward Weston, New Mexico has a rich legacy of photographic talents who have made their homes here. For this collection of images, photographer Thomas F. Barrow, professor emeritus of the University of New Mexico’s renowned photography program, selected 200 images by 25 contemporary photographers who have lived in or visited the state. Not every photograph in this collection was taken in New Mexico; rather, as the authors note, the images reflect how the state influences the work of thephotographers who visit it.
Readers will find a sprinkling of the images they might expect from this type of collection —for example, the luminous landscapes of Paul Caponigro—but they’ll also find such surprises as Betty Hahn’s mixed-media creations, Joel-Peter Witkin’s provocative portraits, and Erika Bluemenfeld’s light studies. In their introductory essays, Barrow discusses how he chose the photographs, and Stuart Ashman places the artists in historical context; throughout the book, Kristin Barendsen profiles the photographers and their work. This collection is for the sophisticated aficionado of contemporary photography, and for anyone who appreciates photography as fine art.
Fiction
Once Upon a Day
By Lisa Tucker
Washington Square Press
368 pages, paperback, $14
Author Lisa Tucker weaves a complex web of parallel story lines that coincide in an ending that leaves the reader with a message of hope that is well-worth waiting for. A young woman, Dorothea, escapes a secluded ranch in present-day New Mexico, where her overprotective father has raised their family free from outside interference, to search for her estranged brother.
Tucker is a lyrical, eloquent writer, and this novel is nothing short of mesmerizing. Also the author of the novels The Song Reader, Shout Down the Moon, and The Cure for Modern Life, Tucker has taught at the Taos Writers’ Conference, and divides her time between New Mexico and Philadelphia.
