Lizards on the Mantel, Burros at the Door

A Big Bend Memoir

Nonfiction, History, Americas, United States, Biography & Memoir
Cover of the book Lizards on the Mantel, Burros at the Door by Etta Koch, University of Texas Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Etta Koch ISBN: 9780292788428
Publisher: University of Texas Press Publication: July 5, 2010
Imprint: University of Texas Press Language: English
Author: Etta Koch
ISBN: 9780292788428
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Publication: July 5, 2010
Imprint: University of Texas Press
Language: English

A woman who went West with her husband in the 1840s must have expected hardships and privation, but during the 1940s, when Etta Koch stopped off in Big Bend with her young family and a 23-foot travel trailer in tow, she anticipated no more than a civilized camping trip between her old home in Ohio and a new one in Arizona. It was only when she found herself moving into an old rock house without plumbing or electricity in the new Big Bend National Park that Etta realized, "From the sheltered life of a city girl of moderate circumstances, I too would have to face the reality of frontier living."

In this book based on her journals and letters, Etta Koch and her daughter June Cooper Price chronicle their family's first years (1944-1946) in the Big Bend. Etta describes how her photographer husband Peter Koch became captivated by the region as a place for natural history filmmaking-and how she and their three young daughters slowly adapted to a pioneer lifestyle during his months' long absences on the photo-lecture circuit. In vivid, often humorous anecdotes, she describes making the rock house into a home, getting to know the Park Service personnel and other neighbors, coping with the local wildlife, and, most of all, learning to love the rugged landscape and the hardy individuals who call it home.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

A woman who went West with her husband in the 1840s must have expected hardships and privation, but during the 1940s, when Etta Koch stopped off in Big Bend with her young family and a 23-foot travel trailer in tow, she anticipated no more than a civilized camping trip between her old home in Ohio and a new one in Arizona. It was only when she found herself moving into an old rock house without plumbing or electricity in the new Big Bend National Park that Etta realized, "From the sheltered life of a city girl of moderate circumstances, I too would have to face the reality of frontier living."

In this book based on her journals and letters, Etta Koch and her daughter June Cooper Price chronicle their family's first years (1944-1946) in the Big Bend. Etta describes how her photographer husband Peter Koch became captivated by the region as a place for natural history filmmaking-and how she and their three young daughters slowly adapted to a pioneer lifestyle during his months' long absences on the photo-lecture circuit. In vivid, often humorous anecdotes, she describes making the rock house into a home, getting to know the Park Service personnel and other neighbors, coping with the local wildlife, and, most of all, learning to love the rugged landscape and the hardy individuals who call it home.

More books from University of Texas Press

Cover of the book Irish Girl: Stories by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Carlos Fuentes by Etta Koch
Cover of the book El Inca by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Mexico in Its Novel by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Slavery and Utopia by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Postcards from the Río Bravo Border by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Horton Foote by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Constables, Marshals, and More by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Age of Globalization by Etta Koch
Cover of the book The Idea of Race in Latin America, 1870-1940 by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Rattler One-Seven: A Vietnam Helicopter Pilot's War Story by Etta Koch
Cover of the book The View from the Back of the Band by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Last Stop Carnegie Hall: New York Philharmonic Trumpeter William Vacchiano by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Ancient Cuzco by Etta Koch
Cover of the book Screen Couple Chemistry by Etta Koch
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy