Wonders of Sand and Stone

A History of Utah's National Parks and Monuments

By: Frederick H Swanson

Narrated by: Karen Edland

Length: 12 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

From Delicate Arch to the Zion Narrows, Utah’s five national parks and eight national monuments are home to some of America’s most amazing scenic treasures, created over long expanses of geologic time. In Wonders of Sand and Stone, Frederick H. Swanson traces the recent human story behind the creation of these places as part of a protected mini-empire of public lands.

Drawing on extensive historical research, Swanson presents little-known accounts of people who saw in these sculptured landscapes something worth protecting. Listeners are introduced to the region’s early explorers, scientists, artists, and travelers, as well as the local residents and tourism promoters, who worked with the National Park Service to build the system of parks and monuments we know today, when Utah’s national parks and monuments face multiple challenges from increased human use and from development outside their borders. As scientists continue to uncover the astonishing diversity of life in these desert and mountain landscapes, and archaeologists and Native Americans document their rich cultural resources, the management of these federal lands remains critically important. Swanson provides us with a detailed and timely background to advance and inform discussions about what form that management should take.

©2020 University of Utah Press (P)2021 University of Utah Press

Great book, narrator ok

Delivers on its promise to tell how Utah's national parks and monuments came to be. Especially strong on Canyonlands. Don't be scared off by the reports of the narration. It could be better, but I've definitely heard worse. (I did laugh out loud when "wanton destruction" became "wonton destruction.") I'm grateful that U of U Press went to the trouble to make this title an audiobook.

Interesting story, poor performance

The story is rather interesting. It's difficult sometimes to concentrate on the story given the very poor performance by the narrator. The narrator often sounds like a computer trying to read the words and mispronounces many words. I can't believe that the author or somebody else associated with the actual book didn't listen to the narration prior to issuing this. I made a list of many words which are mispronounced, probably one of the most notable is Deseret, which the narrator pronounces as desert. I'm not from Utah and neither am I a member of the LDS Church, but I know the distinction between Deseret, which the state of Utah was original named, and desert. I'm afraid that the poor narration and pronunciation detract significantly from the actual story. I am looking forward to reading the print book however.