Desert Shadows: A True Story of the Charles Manson Family in Death Valley

by Bob Murphy

An insider law enforcement account of the fugitive days of the Manson Family in the California Desert.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, History

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

Reviews

[Garth]

This little book is not a great piece of literature, and in fairness it very probably didn't set out to attempt these heights.
What it is though, is a very interesting picture of the Manson Family and their weird and criminal activities in Death Valley.

[D.S. Kinahan]

Everyone knows about the Manson Family and how they murdered Sharon Tate and friends, as well as the LaBiancas. These atrocities are covered in the book, but it’s by no means the main subject of Mr. Murphy’s story. Instead, it focuses on the genesis of the Family, their bizarre lifestyle, their comings and goings in and around Death Valley National Park, their numerous run-ins with those in authority, and other gruesome acts they carried out, even after the Tate/LaBianca trials. I liked it a lot more than I thought I would.

[Paul Campagna]

Terrible writing, although not meant to be a true piece of literature. But interesting topic, and in the end, I learned from it, but just hard to read the whole thing.

[Kim]

I appreciated that this book highlighted roll that Death Valley and Inyo County had in the Manson saga.

[Linda]

Found this book in the Visitor's Center in Death Valley.  (What a place to be on vacation in summer, huh?)  It is written by a former Superintendent of Death Valley National Monument and covers just the action surrounding the Manson Family's stay in Death Valley.  The background of the Tate/LaBianca murders is covered, but it was, surprising to me, NOT the reason the family was found and arrested in Death Valley.  It all started with a piece of construction equipment being set on fire in Death Valley.  The surrounding area and park police had no idea when they rounded up the family that they were under suspicion for those murders.  They were arrested for car theft primarily.  All this was news to me, and I lived through that awful time.  Obviously, I wasn't paying attention.A very good read for a non-writer.

[Matt]

Being a huge fan of the National Park System (with apologies to my libertarian friends), I found "Desert Shadows" to be a refreshing take on the Manson murders as told from the point of view of those who through the course of routine yet thorough police work arrested Manson- the rangers and various law enforcement agencies responsible for the Death Valley area - an area that I personally cherish. This is a quick read, told in a concise, pragmatic, journalistic voice.