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The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn: A Memoir
The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn A Memoir Author:John Nichols, John Nichols As evocative as the aspen foliage that enlivens the high country in October, The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn, originally published in 1982, is the centerpiece of a trilogy that John Nichols wrote about his first fifteen years in Taos, New Mexico. The other volumes are If Mountains Die and On the Mesa. Nichols defines his long sojourn in Taos ... more »as enthusiastically, poignantly-and humorously-as any of the artists who have so richly evoked the spirit of our complex state. There are disquisitions on landscape, community, weather, old age, and the vagaries of time. Mountains, mesa, and river gorge loom prominently in every chapter. Personalities galore-friends, enemies, soothsayers, and lovers-inhabit the narrative, and curious animals stroll about. Great sections on trout fishing, hunting, and rattlesnakes illuminate the story. Old timers filled with wisdom bequeath to Nichols their precious roots. Politics and mythologies shine throughout, and the authors famous magic realism occasionally rears its gaudy head to explicate a thorny situation. New Mexico past and present is on every page, and cautionary tales for the future also abound. In the end, The Last Beautiful Days of Autumn is a classic and exuberant paean to the rhythm of life in a wonderful country by the noted author of The Milagro Beanfield War and many other works of fiction and nonfiction, including On the Mesa (also published by Ancient City Press).« less