

The Magazine of the Southwest - Thevet
http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/07/17/the-magazine-of-the-southwest/

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jrapdx3
The images on those magazine covers shown in the article bring back memories
of life growing up in the Arizona desert long before it became so populated.

As a kid I could hike for miles in the wilderness, among huge saguaro cactus
and all the other living things inhabiting the desert. Over the sequence of
many seasons the subtle beauty of that environment gradually revealed itself.
The desert contained its own unique spirit which _Desert_ was aiming to
convey. I'd rate it a success, the photos were accurate, capturing a glimpse
of the desert's essence.

Another magazine, maybe more familiar, is _Arizona Highways_ , first published
in the 1920's. AH also presented spectacular pictures of the state's assets,
which were a treasure, though it had a more "glossy", promotional style to it.
My mother worked for AH for many years (as a proofreader), so I suppose I'm
predisposed to rate it favorably, though I admit it's possibly not as refined
as its rival.

Loving the desert was not easy, an acquired taste for most. The magazines were
a beacon for a subset of readers who were drawn to explore the region, and
settle there. The incredible sprawl that now engulfs the Southwest deserts has
disturbed the environment and diminished its value. We should hope the few who
still care will preserve what remains of the desert as it was a century ago.

~~~
ridgeguy
Another (former) desert rat here. I also remember rambling among the Saguaros
and checking my hiking boots for scorpions in the morning as part of living on
the outskirts of Phoenix in the 60s.

I well remember Desert and Arizona Highways as magazines that I cadged from a
neighbor when he was done with them. Kudos to your Mom, AH was a wonderful
publication.

I agree the unique barren beauty of the desert Southwest is quite a lot harder
to find nowadays. Unfortunate.

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eCa
All issues available here:
[http://mydesertmagazine.com/Desert_magazine_archive.html](http://mydesertmagazine.com/Desert_magazine_archive.html)

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bitbckt
Similar, for those so inclined:
[http://desertoracle.com](http://desertoracle.com).

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bane
Does anybody know of a large archive of paris review magazines as pdfs around?

I'm kind of surprised they aren't up at archive.org

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cpeterso
eCa posted a link to an archive of PDFs below:

[http://mydesertmagazine.com/Desert_magazine_archive.html](http://mydesertmagazine.com/Desert_magazine_archive.html)

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9913280](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9913280)

~~~
bane
No, I mean Paris Review, not Desert Magazine.

Kind of like how AramcoWorld has all their back issues available.

[http://www.aramcoworld.com/index/BackIssues2010.aspx](http://www.aramcoworld.com/index/BackIssues2010.aspx)

