What do you think?
Rate this book
A New Mexico Memoir #2
The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn
The second and center piece in a trilogy of memoirs that John Nichols wrote about his first fifteen years in Taos, New Mexico.
249 pages, Paperback
First published May 31, 1982
86 people want to read
About the author
John Nichols
32 books113 followersJohn Nichols is the author of the New Mexico trilogy, a series about the complex relationship between history, race and ethnicity, and land and water rights in the fictional Chamisaville County, New Mexico. The trilogy consists of The Milagro Beanfield War (which was adapted into the film The Milagro Beanfield War directed by Robert Redford), The Magic Journey, and The Nirvana Blues.
Two of his other novels have been made into films. The Wizard of Loneliness was published in 1966 and the film version with Lukas Haas was made in 1988. Another successful movie adaptation was of The Sterile Cuckoo, which was published in 1965 and was filmed by Alan J. Pakula in 1969.
Nichols has also written non-fiction, including the trilogy If Mountains Die, The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn and On the Mesa. John Nichols has lived in Taos, New Mexico for many years.
Two of his other novels have been made into films. The Wizard of Loneliness was published in 1966 and the film version with Lukas Haas was made in 1988. Another successful movie adaptation was of The Sterile Cuckoo, which was published in 1965 and was filmed by Alan J. Pakula in 1969.
Nichols has also written non-fiction, including the trilogy If Mountains Die, The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn and On the Mesa. John Nichols has lived in Taos, New Mexico for many years.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 20, 2013
John Nichols gives us a muted but autumnal view of northern New Mexico which is both sentimental and humorous. He starts off by explaining how he treasures the loneliness of the fall season and how it separates itself from summer, much to his delight. He laments the loss of the wild nature of the area as developers build copycat housing units and strip malls. "Pizzafication of landscape."
And I have no fear of winter.
Nichols can be very candid here in regards to sex and the death of animals, but he certainly has a way with words ("sunshine oozes like syrup over warm boulders"), making his descriptions of people and nature come alive. When he says he prays for coyotes, he truly means it as he admires their craftiness and ability to adapt to the encroaching humans.
To get from here to there I tiptoe.
He really takes off when illustrating a tremendously hilarious day of trout fishing where everything goes wrong; or explaining how he came to live with several cats; or even, in just one sentence, describing the death throes of a kangaroo rat bitten by a plague flea. This is a cappuccino read, meant for a coffeehouse stay on an October day when the clouds "travel like white handkerchiefs".
Book Season = Autumn (barista weather)
And I have no fear of winter.
Nichols can be very candid here in regards to sex and the death of animals, but he certainly has a way with words ("sunshine oozes like syrup over warm boulders"), making his descriptions of people and nature come alive. When he says he prays for coyotes, he truly means it as he admires their craftiness and ability to adapt to the encroaching humans.
To get from here to there I tiptoe.
He really takes off when illustrating a tremendously hilarious day of trout fishing where everything goes wrong; or explaining how he came to live with several cats; or even, in just one sentence, describing the death throes of a kangaroo rat bitten by a plague flea. This is a cappuccino read, meant for a coffeehouse stay on an October day when the clouds "travel like white handkerchiefs".
Book Season = Autumn (barista weather)
April 10, 2015
This is my new favorite book of all time. I'd describe it as the "Walden" for those who grew up (or even spent some time) in Northern New Mexico. His recounting of anecdotes about living in Taos, NM, interactions with his friends, family, acquaintances, fishing the Rio Grande, wandering the high desert and the mountains, and making love inspired me to take more pleasure in the life I live. What's more, his descriptions of Northern New Mexico just plain made my heart hurt with homesickness. I love Northern New Mexico and it is so great to read work from such a talented author who loves Northern New Mexico just the same.
January 8, 2009
John Nichols is by far one of my favorite authors and this is one of my non-fiction favorites. An environmental love story between the man and the area in and around Taos, New Mexico. Check out 'On the Mesa' as well. I can't say enough about this man and his writing.
January 21, 2020
"The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn" is Nichols's second part of a memoir trilogy reflecting on his first fifteen years living in Taos, New Mexico after leaving New York City. It follows on "If Mountains Die," the first in the series. I liked the first book so much I immediately got the second, but was disappointed; it's not as good or as fresh as the first. In the edition that I read, Nichols added an "Author's Note" from 2000 at the beginning to update changes in his life and those of some of his friends and neighbors since the book was originally published in 1982. Then follows a prologue, seventeen chapters grouped in six sections, and an epilogue. The six sections of the book have themes, so each of the chapters included within the section has a similar topic. The section topics include hiking with neighbors to explore the terrain, pets and animals, fly fishing, searching for property to buy outside Taos proper, and a nostalgic return to the East Coast where Nichols was raised on Long Island.
Ironically, the two chapters about Nichols's return to Long Island are the best in the book. They are heartfelt and full of longing. Perhaps it's because I am a naturalist and a native of the East Coast, but I found these two chapters very moving.
The chapters about fly fishing were irritating and overly long. One chapter, in which Nichols chronicles his misadventures fly fishing in the Rio Grande Gorge west of Taos, makes him seem like a complete fool. I think he was trying to write humor, but he just comes across as a careless bumbler who could very easily get himself seriously hurt or killed.
The chapter about animals and pets was only slightly less irritating. Pets are "throw aways" that Nichols (and his neighbors) enjoy while they're around but about which they don't take much care to protect. In addition, Nichols's cats are killers that capture birds as well as rodents.
Nichols is a good, lyrical writer who captures the feel of the landscape, the rivers, and the terrain. His grandfather and father were professional naturalists, and they included Nichols in their field work. He was sensitive and picked-up a lot of their experience. The passages about the natural world are probably the best parts of the book.
Note that there is quite a bit of explicit erotic writing in parts of the book. I think Nichols was horny when he wrote the book.
Ironically, the two chapters about Nichols's return to Long Island are the best in the book. They are heartfelt and full of longing. Perhaps it's because I am a naturalist and a native of the East Coast, but I found these two chapters very moving.
The chapters about fly fishing were irritating and overly long. One chapter, in which Nichols chronicles his misadventures fly fishing in the Rio Grande Gorge west of Taos, makes him seem like a complete fool. I think he was trying to write humor, but he just comes across as a careless bumbler who could very easily get himself seriously hurt or killed.
The chapter about animals and pets was only slightly less irritating. Pets are "throw aways" that Nichols (and his neighbors) enjoy while they're around but about which they don't take much care to protect. In addition, Nichols's cats are killers that capture birds as well as rodents.
Nichols is a good, lyrical writer who captures the feel of the landscape, the rivers, and the terrain. His grandfather and father were professional naturalists, and they included Nichols in their field work. He was sensitive and picked-up a lot of their experience. The passages about the natural world are probably the best parts of the book.
Note that there is quite a bit of explicit erotic writing in parts of the book. I think Nichols was horny when he wrote the book.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews