Survival Along the Continental Divide: An Anthology of Interviews

Jack Loeffler

For over forty years aural historian Jack Loeffler has wandered the West engaging people in conversations and recording those conversations for posterity. When asked by the New Mexico Humanities Council to produce an anthology of interviews that would combine elements of two projects sponsored by the Council, the Between Fences traveling exhibition and a project focused on the Great Depression and New Deal, Loeffler turned to the landscape of the Continental Divide and the diverse cultures that inhabit both sides of its arid terrain.

Hopi, Navajo, Rio Grande Puebloan, Hispano, and Anglo cultures are represented in three sections of interviews that respectively address shifting cultural boundaries, explore the effects in New Mexico of the New Deal's attempts to reinvigorate the economy and mainstream American culture, and suggest ways of delving into the difficult situations that face the West today. Together, these diverse perspectives reveal the rich cultural mosaic that has evolved in this extraordinary landscape.

"...significantly contributes to perspectives on the West, human ecology, and ethical environmental responses....Highly recommended."--Choice Magazine

"[Survival Along the Continental Divide] is at once wise, informative, and delightful."--Southwestern American Literature

Jack Loeffler is a writer, aural historian, and radio producer in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He is a winner of a 2008 Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts for ethnomusicology and writing.

6 x 9 285 pages 18 halftones, 1 map