The Hidden West: Journeys in the American Outback

by Rob Schultheis

Book Overview

The Hidden West is a memorable account of one man's journey through terra incognita - secret places that still exist in the American West. Among the mysterious and beautiful places through which the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0865470871
• ISBN13: 9780865470873
• Release Date: January 1983
• Publisher: North Point Press
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A Diamond in the Rough

Let me just start by saying that the previous reviewer who said that this author is better than Edward Abbey is sorely mistaken. But anyway... Beautiful book. Wild, imaginative visual imagery. His insights into life are profound and really hit a chord with me. There are a lot of spiritual overtones in this book that hooked me from the beginning. I recommend this book to anyone interested in the natural history or native american history of the southwest canyonlonds, prairelands and honestly...just an interest in wilderness in general is enough. Buy! Enjoy! Share! Guard with your life!

CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS ONE HIGHLY ENOUGH

I first read this one in 1982 and have returned to it time and again. I, like a couple of other reviewers, cannot understand why this book has not recieved more attention. It is well written, funny, informative and just simply fun to read. It is a collection of tales, stories, or what have you, of the western portion of our country. The author has wonderful insight and certainly knows his subject. I cannot think of a page of this work I did not absolutely enjoy. Highly recommend this one.

A book that deserves a much wider readership

I first read this book in the mid-1980s, and have been a huge fan of it ever since. It was out of print from a long time after the original publisher, North Point Press, went out of business. I am delighted that it is now available once more. It deserves to be read by anyone interested in the American West.This is a wide-ranging book that deals with many aspect of the American West in general and the desert areas in particular. Schultheis is a gifted writer, and has a knack not only for telling a good tale but also for turning a wonderful line. He is highly attuned to the remarkable and the humorous in almost every situation, and the book is a marvelous blend of the unexpected, the reflective, and the funny.My favorite moment might be an occasion he recounts of visiting a store in Navajo territory. While in the store, an elderly Navajo stumbles up to him and says, apropos of nothing, "Hey, I hear that Elvis died," in a tone that almost suggests the Schultheis and The King were lifelong pals. After replying, that yes, Elvis had died and that he had evidently been pretty sick, the Navajo, ignoring what Schultheis had said, continues, "Yeah, Elvis and Hitler, two of your greatest leaders, dead." (I am quoting this story from memory, so don't call me to task for specific inaccuracies.)This is a book filled with many wonderful and marvelous moments. I would heartily urge anyone with an interest in literature about the American West or the desert to read it as soon as possible.

I really liked this book

A cousin tipped me off to this little known masterpiece, which consists of a short, well-written series of anecdotes and tales about the West. An expert in verbal imagery, Schultheis takes you gambling at Native American pow-wow, canyon ratting in Utah, meeting a jack rabbit who lures motorcyclists to their doom, and other esoteric topics with equal aplomb.His best tale, and the one you won't forget, is the last in order, a fictional episode during the next great Western drought, when the xerothermic climate brings disaster west of the Mississippi. Schultheis is very readable, and each essay is thought-provoking. I predict you will enjoy this wonderful book. As the previous reviewer cautions, however, loan it out at your own risk.

Great imagery, makes you long for desert and mountain...

Rob's imagery and cutting edge mind put him up there with the best - I like him better than the proverbial Ed Abbey (Rob's a little more cerebral). I'm an avid reader of anything to do with the desert Southwest (and West), as well as a desert rat myself, and I was hard put to find anything I'd read to date that was this good. You won't be disappointed with this book - buy an extra for your friends, because they'll "borrow" it and never return it (I've now bought 3 of them and can't find my latest copy...hmmm, now that I think of it, I suspect it went to Hawaii with a friend...)