Deserts, Poetry, and Flight

Carrying on with the "M" authors list, I next delved into two books: one is by James A. MacMahon, a professor of Ecology at Utah State University, entitled Deserts: A National Audubon Society Nature Guide. The other is an anthology of 20th century African American poetry, edited by Clarence Major, called The Garden Thrives.

James A. MacMahon

Deserts is mainly a reference work containing many images and descriptions of geographical and geologic features, flora and fauna to be found in the four major deserts of the United States--the Great Basin, the Sonoran, the Chihuahuan, and the Mojave. The introduction is extensive, though; from it I learned a great deal about what constitutes a desert and how plants and animals adapt to the harsh climate in which they make their home. Before I started this book, for instance, I was unaware that there are several types of sagebrush, and that at least one animal, the sage grouse, is almost totally dependent on that bush for its food, shelter, nesting materials, cover and concealment. In fact, I was so intrigued that I looked up the bird on the internet and found a fascinating National Geographic special that came out about a year ago. It can still be found at YouTube: The Greater Sage Grouse. I recommend viewing it. The bird is beautiful as well as clever! And if you're planning a trip to an American desert in the future, or even just want to learn about deserts, I highly recommend buying this Audubon field guide.

Clarence Major

While learning about deserts, I was also reading the poetry anthology with much interest. It contains over 100 African American poets of the 20th century, most of whom I had never heard of before. So it was an enjoyable experience to discover so many wonderful poets. I plan to learn more about many of them. One of the poets of whom I had heard is the famous Harlem Renaissance poet, Jean Toomer. One of his poems, "Reapers," appeared in his novel Cane. It was such a powerful poem I decided to make it into a song. I read Cane a while back; you can read my review of the book at this post: October 6, 2013.

David McCullough

The "M" book I'm currently reading is the biography of the Wright brothers by one of my favorite biographers, David McCullough. It's titled simply, The Wright Brothers, and it mainly covers their invention of the airplane and its aftermath. It's beautifully written, as are all McCullough's books. I read his book 1776 back about 10 years ago and enjoyed it very much, so I recommend this book highly. I'll have more to say in the next post!