"I quite agree that much of the book will seem coarse, rude, bad-tempered, violently prejudiced, unconstructive - even frankly antisocial in its point of view. Serious critics, serious librarians, serious associate professors of English will if they read this work dislike it intensely; at least I hope so."
Abbey claimed Desert Solitaire was "not a travel guide but an elegy. A memorial. You're holding a tombstone in your hands. A bloody rock. Don't drop it on your foot - throw it at something big and glassy. What do you have to lose?" Often compared to Thoreau's Walden, the book focuses on Abbey's tenure as a park ranger at Arches National Park near Moab, Utah. "I find that in contemplating the natural work my pleasure is greater if there are not too many others contemplating it with me, at the same time."
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