Between the Covers: Book It!, Fire Fest Edition

03 Jan Between the Covers: Book It!, Fire Fest Edition

Editor’s note: Book It! is a weekly column from Daiva Chesonis, co-owner of your favorite local bookstore, Between the Covers. The blog will offer tips about what to look for in the store when you stop by to browse or for a cuppa at High Alpine Coffee Bar. In this week’s edition, the idea is to support Telluride’s first ever Fire Festival.

In anticipation of Telluride’s first Fire Festival, here are some – dare we say it? – here are some hot books to check out …

Regardless of whether you’ve been to Burning Man or have the desert happening lodged on your ever-expanding bucket list, the art and the stories of participation are what it’s all about and we’ve got two newish titles that cover much of that magical realm.

The first Burning Man book is “Burning Man: Art on Fire” compiled by Jennifer Raiser with stellar photography by Sidney Erthal and Scott London. Raiser is founder and editor of SFWire.com, and has written for The San Francisco Chronicle and The Huffington Post. She is also the treasurer of the Burning Man Project. Erthal has had his camera poised for the past seven Burns, which is how Burning Man aficionados carbon-date their experience with the festival. Born and educated in Brazil, he has lived in the San Francisco Bay area for the past decade. London is a longtime photographer of Burning Man and his images have appeared in Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, GQ, and National Geographic Traveler. He is the former host of NPR’s “Insight and Outlook.” So no doubt, a worthy ensemble guides you through the experience, whether lived or looking to do so. Local connection-wise (and not at all surprising), nestled within the pages of this oversized coffee table tome, Telluride’s own metal sculptor Anton-Viditz Ward and one of his creations are featured. This is a book for active and armchair burners alike.

The second fiery feature from the world of words is “Playa Dust: Collected Stories from Burning Man” by Samantha Krukowski.

A compilation of essays by authors who are part of the universe of Burning Man or who envisage the many ideas and landscapes on its periphery, this paperback juxtaposes an (unusual) array of voices and stories, revealing the complex nature and range of the annual pilgrimage to the desert. When the event sold out for the first time in 2011, there was a marked increase in the commentary about its history, current status and future. In 2012, a new random lottery system for tickets left many long-time attendees ticketless and the commentary deepened. Questions about the evolution, meaning and value of Burning Man as an experiment in community, self-sufficiency and anti-capitalism are being raised and Krukowski seeks to answer them in this collection that even includes a little something from the lawyers who have brokered Burning Man’s controversial existence.

The third title, “Fire Season: Field Notes from a Wilderness Lookout” by Philip Connors is a perennial BTC staff favorite from 2011. The book was also the winner of the Grand Prize at the Banff Mountain Book Competition. For nearly a decade, Connors spent half the year in a 7-foot x 7-foot tower, 10,000 feet above sea level in remote New Mexico, keeping watch over the Gila National Forest, one of the most fire-prone areas in the country. “Fire Season” is his remarkable reflection on work, man’s place in the wild, and the charms of solitude. Personally, staring out at the Aldo Leopold Wilderness for extended periods of time, looking for the telltale “smoke,” sounds divine. As long as a tall stack of books is nearby … and perhaps a hot tottie.

We invited all of the authors and contributors to come to Telluride for in-person events but alas, none could tear themselves away from current projects. No matter, the bookstore will toast their undying energy for fire in all its incarnations with fun window displays that will also support and encourage a first-time fest among the sea of our many. Kudos to Fire Fest organizers for placing their wicked wonder in January … a wonderful time of year to indulge in the dual wonder of fire and ice!

Purchase Fire Fest tickets here.