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The Backwoods of Everywhere: Words From a Wandering Local
Throughout personal essays spiked with humor and natural science, archaeologist R. E. Burrillo widens his range beyond his popular Behind the Bears Ears.
After an upstate New York childhood and a bartending stint in New Orleans’ French Quarter, seasonal resort work led R. E. Burrillo to the desert Southwest, whose redrock landscapes were a source of stability through mental and physical illness. In The Backwoods of Everywhere, archaeologist Burrillo excavates his past, examining Indigenous and tourist cultures, the complexities of American archaeology, and what it means to be a local. From the ancient canal systems of Phoenix, Arizona, to the modern Mayan communities of the Yucatan Peninsula, to the depths of the Grand Canyon, Burrillo brings readers on an entertaining romp chock-full of history, ecology, cultural preservation, and personal stories.
In the vein of Bill Bryson, Tim Cahill, and Ellen Meloy, Burrillo's is a fresh voice in humor-spiked nature writing and cultural commentary. Running throughout the wide-ranging topics of The Backwoods of Everywhere are themes of place and locality, and how these vary between cultures and individuals. Marrying the intensely personal with the complex and technical, Burrillo's candid voice brings humor, wonder, irony, and wit to each thought-provoking essay.
After an upstate New York childhood and a bartending stint in New Orleans’ French Quarter, seasonal resort work led R. E. Burrillo to the desert Southwest, whose redrock landscapes were a source of stability through mental and physical illness. In The Backwoods of Everywhere, archaeologist Burrillo excavates his past, examining Indigenous and tourist cultures, the complexities of American archaeology, and what it means to be a local. From the ancient canal systems of Phoenix, Arizona, to the modern Mayan communities of the Yucatan Peninsula, to the depths of the Grand Canyon, Burrillo brings readers on an entertaining romp chock-full of history, ecology, cultural preservation, and personal stories.
In the vein of Bill Bryson, Tim Cahill, and Ellen Meloy, Burrillo's is a fresh voice in humor-spiked nature writing and cultural commentary. Running throughout the wide-ranging topics of The Backwoods of Everywhere are themes of place and locality, and how these vary between cultures and individuals. Marrying the intensely personal with the complex and technical, Burrillo's candid voice brings humor, wonder, irony, and wit to each thought-provoking essay.
279 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 12, 2022
About the author
R.E. Burrillo
2 books7 followersRalph "R.E." Burrillo is an archaeologist, author, and conservation advocate. His writing has appeared in Archaeology Southwest, Colorado Plateau Advocate, The Salt Lake Tribune, Blue Mountain Shadows, The Moab Times, The Navajo-Hopi Observer, Kiva, The Gulch, The Dust, The Archaeological Record, Flag Live, The San Juan Record, and Southwestern Lore. He is also the author of the award-winning Behind the Bears Ears: Exploring the Cultural and Natural Histories of a Sacred Landscape; and The Backwoods of Everywhere: Words from a Wandering Local. He currently splits his time between Scottsdale and Flagstaff, AZ.
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Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
August 4, 2022
The book was a bit difficult to follow and seem scattered with the topics. However, some paragraphs were well written and thought provoking. Overall, the book didn't flow well.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review