Skywater by Melinda Worth Popham at Pat’s House
The novel Skywater by Melinda Worth Popham is the featured book for the March 7th Book Club meeting at Pat’s house. Set in the Sonoran desert, this novel is unique in that it deals with environmental, ethical, and spiritual issues from a coyote’s perspective.
To get to Pat’s house from Joshua Tree, take Hwy 62 east and turn left on Sunburst at the light. Turn right on Golden, left on Border, and keep your eyes peeled for Pole and Del Oro signs then turn right on the next road, which is Winters (sign on left side of road). Drive 3.75 miles, watch for the Community Center, and turn left on Mockingbird, drive 1 mile and turn right on Saturn. Pat’s green house will be the first house on the left, about a half mile.
From 29 Palms, on rather bumpy roads, take Hwy. 62 west and turn right on Sunfair. Sunfair turns into Coyote Valley Rd when the pavement runs out near the JT lake camp ground. Drive for about 3 miles and turn left on Cascade, the first road after crossing Winters. Drive 1 mile and turn right on Saturn (look for sign or arrow, no street sign). Pat’s green house will be the first one on the left, about a quarter mile.
See Book Club homepage for more information on this monthly gathering
Every month from October 2014 until March 2020, Kip’s Desert Book Club gathered on the first Monday of the month at 7:00 pm in the home of a different resident of the Morongo Basin to discuss a book that in one way or another touches on the theme of “desert”.
Since the start of the pandemic, Kip has been hard at work making renovations to the kitchen and bathrooms at Copper Mountain Mesa Community Center, where he is the board President, and keeping their monthly USDA food drive alive. During this time, Kip’s Desert Book Club had largely been on pause, with the exception of a few virtual meetings. These virtual gatherings allowed us to welcome the participation of book club fans from beyond our local region.
Sixty-six books, more than seven years, and one pandemic later, Kip has decided to step back from being the primary book club organizer and join the rest of us as readers. Kip, we thank you for all the wonderful and eclectic desert books you’ve chosen over the years, as well as the unforgettable stories and knowledge you continue to share (if you know, you know!)
So, we are excited to announce that beginning in January 2022, our in-person book club will resume as the Desert Research Library Book Club (or DRL Book Club, for short). Each month, a member of the current Desert Research Library Artist Cohort will select a book from the library as that month’s book club selection.
