Product Description

Three months on the New York Times bestseller list, PrairyErth is now in paperback. Robert Penn Warren pronounced Heat-Moon's Blue Highways "a masterpiece." Now Heat-Moon has pulled to the side of the road and set off on foot to take readers on an exploration of time and space, landscape and history in the Flint Hills of central Kansas.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #113410 in Books
• Published on: 1999-02-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 640 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780395925690
• Condition: USED - VERY GOOD
• Notes:
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Whereas Blue Highways dealt with Heat-Moon's auto trip across America, PrairyErth (an old term for heartland soils) records a journey mostly on foot across the tallgrass prairies and grasslands of Chase County, Kans. In a great cornucopia of a book, a majestic, healing hymn to America's potential, Heat-Moon attempts to penetrate the spirit of the land, a land which explorer Zebulon Pike and later white settlers stole from the Kansa (Kaw) Indians. There are now only six full-blood Kaw survivors, most of whom live on a reservation in Oklahoma. Heat-Moon writes of a feminist rancher who hires women primarily, of a farm couple swept aloft by a tornado, of abolitionists who wanted slaves free but not equal. He pauses to ponder fence posts, arrowheads and the nesting habits of pack rats. He talks to conservationists and coyote hunters, excerpts pioneer diaries and recreates the 1931 airplane crash that killed football hero Knute Rockne. Each chapter is prefaced by a map and by pages of quotations ranging from Thoreau to Frank Lloyd Wright. First serial to the Atlantic; BOMC selection.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
This new work from the author of Blue Highways ( LJ 11/1/82) is an immersion into the past, present, and future of Chase County in south central Kansas. Located in the heart of the Flint Hills, the sparsely populated area contains one of the best remaining tracts of tallgrass prairie that once covered much of the Midwest. ("PrairyErth" is an old geologic term for prairie soils). Having spent six years engaging in "participatory history," Heat-Moon creates a feel for the land and a rural way of life that seems to be dead or dying across America. Dividing his book into quadrangles, he presents a verbal map that examines the county's geological, natural, and human history. This is a fascinating book that could be improved only with the addition of an index. Highly recommended, especially for local, natural, and Western history collections. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 6/1/91; BOMC selection.
- Tim Markus, Evergreen State Coll. Lib., Olympia, Wash.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
The long-awaited return of Heat-Moon, whose bestselling Blue Highways (1983) ranged far and wide on the byways of America, offers a memorable view of the American heartland--in the form of a splendid survey/view of a single Kansas county, the location of the last remaining expanse of tall-grass prairie. Through hundreds of vignettes and thumbnail sketches, constituting a meticulous examination of the hills and households of rural Chase County, Heat-Moon lays down a fascinating grid of interlocking experiences gathered over a five-year period. Each section of the book starts with materials from the author's ``commonplace book,'' in which relevant passages taken from 19th- and 20th-century ruminations on the American West and Kansas prepare the thematic ground for the material to follow. Facts, observations, chance encounters, and personal detail intermingle superbly in a unique travelogue, as both the ``countians'' and the many facets of their world are revealed and transformed by gentle metaphysical speculations. Feminist caf‚-owners and retired limestone cutters give of themselves in their own words, while discussions of prairie soil and Osage oranges, recent native history, and distant geologic events enrich the human connections. One samples these offerings as easily as one might ramble through the stacks of a well-stocked, highly personalized library, effortlessly acquiring in the process more information than seems possible about the American experience. Rewarding and restless, evocative in its parts and deeply resonant as a whole, this is a strong successor to Blue Highways, establishing Heat-Moon as a master chronicler in the grand tradition. (Maps and drawings.) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Customer Reviews

Enchantment of inches
I read this book based on loving Blue Highways and recognizing Least Heat-Moon as a beautiful writer. I never thought that I would be enthralled with one county in one state; yet, I was truly engrossed each page of this book about one county in Kansas. Least Heat-Moon has a way of touching the minute specifics of the history of our country and does it in such a way that you feel you are there sipping tea or a beer with the neighbor next door each step of the way across the county. A wonderful study of Americana history and while the length of the book is possibly intimidating to many, those of us who really appreciate excellent writing will smile our way across the county inch by inch and wish there were more!

PrairyErth - A book that led me too Chase County
I have just spent 2 days exploring Chase County, Kansas. I had read the book PrairyErth and found myself drawn to explore it for myself.

Driving along I50, I rejoiced at crossing the Chase County border. I had fun exploring the Chase County courthouse, eating at the Emma Chase cafe and meeting folks that have met Heat Moon. Seeing the small towns of Matfield Green, Bazaar and Wonsevu were particularly interesting.

The historical museum in Cottonwood Falls was a highlight for me, Pat, who is one of the volunteers there was extremly helpful and I found everyone I met and spoke too in Chase County as well as the whole of Kansas, a joy to meet and talk too.

I plan to read the book PrairyErth again and relive my 2 days spent in Chase County. I congratulate you Bill on a great book that placed in my soul a want to travel and discover Kansas for myself.

Deep Reading
Ignorant, I found PrairyErth at a book-giveaway and would now have to count it among the best books I've ever read. The book is a thorough examination of a county that (possibly) many people would assume contains nothing but prairie grass. The point is how deep a map can be drawn of even the neglected places. Heat-Moon is amazing and inspiring, covering so many bases without over-stepping any of them. I had never even heard of Chase County but now I feel as though its every acre has been tattooed on my inner eyelids. Oh, and also: read it slow and steady. Pace yourself as Heat-Moon has..