Saturday, April 18, 2015

Generic?

                                               Constant commenter Lucas Machais wondered if the cover photo on the new ed of Querencia- the- book, seen below with my other  new covers, was "generic". I am afraid I got more indignant than I should have. We pay attention to the particular here, not the general. I answered that the cover photo

"... was taken up Anchor Canyon five miles east in the Magdalena Range, looking northeast over a cabin built by the Strozzis, a family of the local Italian- Swiss "cousins" early in the last century, then over Lee Henderson's ranch where we run the dogs and hawks and Vadim Gorbatov drew the quail. Strawberry Peak, where Charlie Galt found the northernmost specimen of Crotalus lepidus, stands at the edge of the Rio Grande Rift; the Big River flows north to south, left to right, behind it and 2500 feet below."

Dogs on ranch, Lee's horses.

Lee and Gorbatov quail, Vadim with Libby on the ranch, and studying a Swainson's hawk nest there:
Me with Charlie's snake, a million years ago:
The infamous Ferruginous hawk nest made, all but the cup, of fencing wire, which so fascinated the Russians.
I had hoped to "quote" Russ Chatham's cover painting of Betsy and her hounds on the original Q, itself an accidental near- quote of this well- known  shot  of Karen Blixen and HER hounds,  with this haunted pic of me on a Christmas hunt on the plain, but was persuaded, reluctantly,  to go with a different concept. None of this is anything but intensely local.  And all but the Blixen take place within the field of the first cover photo.


4 comments:

Margory said...

Well - I've read and re-read the insides of this book and I love all the covers and covers' stories - and I have deerhounds and know the Blixen photo(s) well -- but all I'll really say is that I think Mr. Tony Hillerman has the better observation about any edition of this remarkable book.

For new and some of us repeat readers congratulations and all good wishes for the reissue.

Moro Rogers said...

That is one hardcore nest.

Anonymous said...

...And there is your NEXT idea for a book--a compilation of photographs of all your many adventures titled something like "Querencia Illustrated"! I'd buy it.....L.B.

Karen Carroll said...

Lance and Jill Morrow in Wyoming documented a Ferrug nest made completely with bailing wire on top of a power pole. It apparently raised young successfully.