40th Anniversary Celebration of The Desert Smells Like Rain with Gary Nabhan

Join us for this special 40th anniversary celebration for Gary Paul Nabhan’s book, The Desert Smells Like Rain with a presentation with the author, and an afterparty with a book signing of the new edition.

When: Wednesday, September 28, 2022, 6:30 p.m. at La Suprema Works, 319 W. Simpson Street. Event is free, but capacity is limited so registration is required. Author Gary Paul Nabhan will discuss the new edition, and books will be available for purchase.

One ticket per person. Please register here.

Join us for an afterparty and book signing with the author at Exo’s El Crisol Bar, 196 W. Simpson Street, 7:30 p.m.

Published more than forty years ago, The Desert Smells Like Rain remains a classic about nature, the Sonoran Desert & the Tohono O’odham. Gary Paul Nabhan brings O’odham voices to the page at every turn. He writes elegantly of how they husband scant water supplies, grow crops, and utilize edible wild foods. Woven through his account are coyote tales, O’odham children’s impressions of the desert, and observations of the political problems that come with living on both sides of an international border. Nabhan conveys the everyday life and extraordinary perseverance of these desert people.

This new edition includes a new preface written by the author, in which he reflects on his gratitude for the O’odham people who shared their knowledge with him, and a new cover by Tohono O’odham artist Michael Chiago. Nabhan writes about his own heritage and connections to the desert, climate change, and the border. He shares his awe and gratitude for O’odham writers and storytellers who have been generous enough to share stories with those of us from other cultural traditions so that we may also respect and appreciate the smell of the desert after a rain.