Chaco Canyon: Archaeologists Explore the Lives of an Ancient Society
"Everything you need to know about the first residents of America's desert Southwest, and what happened to them."--John Monaghan,Providence Journal(Selected as a Favorite Book of 2005)"Fagan's evocative prose gives readers a sense of the environment of the San Juan Basin and Chaco today, from the remains of great houses such as Pueblo Bonito, to the small settlements, which he stresses need more investigation. Readers obtain a feeling for Chaco life from its earliest habitation by nomadic foragers 11,000 years ago through the flourishing of the Ancestral Pueblos.... Draws together a massive amount of material into a graceful, thoughtful work, well documented with annotated references."--Library Journal"Brian Fagan has captured the essence of the lives of the ancient puebloan peoples of Chaco Canyon in his detailed account of their successful creation of a complex society in a harsh environment.  His skillful handling of opposing scholarly views on the evolution of this society makes his book an especially valuable contribution to our understanding of the Chaco Phenomenon." --R. Gwinn Vivian, Curator Emeritus, Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, Tucson"In this insightful and accessible narrative, Brian Fagan has walked with us through the streets, outcroppings, and ruins of Chaco Canyon, gathering information from those who actually lived there in the years past and as well from those of present-day informed opinion.  The result is an agreeable blend of science, speculation, and story, set forth with a captivating narrative grace.  This has become and will remain the definitive Chaco for some considerable time to come." --Shelly Lowenkopf, author ofThe Fiction Writers' Tool Kit"Fagan offers interpretations to perplexing puzzles. He examines how many people might have lived and worked here, why they chose this place and eventually left, how they might have governed, conducted trade and observed religious rites, as well as why the builders also made wide, straight roads that now fade into empty desert."--Los Angeles Times"Brian Fagan has a special talent for taking a voluminous archaeological literature, like that of the Chaco culture, and distilling it into a single, readable volume accessible to the interested layperson.  What is remarkable is his ability to do this without sacrificing the richness of archaeological debate and interpretation." --Lynn Sebastian, author ofThe Chaco Anasazi