Endless Nevada (Cerca Book) [Hardcover]

Rich Moreno (Author), Larry Prosor (Author)

Book Description

Series: Cerca Book | Publication Date: November 1, 2002

Nevada has long been a place of endless mystery, irony and flat-out wonderment for those who have taken time to experience it. It's easily the most eccentric, interesting, and misunderstood state in the union. Moreno and Prosor have probed every hidden region of Nevada to find and chronicle the lives and visages of Nevadas gone and Nevadas present. They find beauty not in a desolate landscape but in hues so subtle that they are often overlooked. They find man's presence in ways that reveal how temporal it is. They unfold the story of Nevada with color, depth, and literary precision.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Photography has been Larry Prosor's love since age twelve. He has had no formal photographic schooling. The knowledge and techniques come from over twenty years of trying to show others the wonders of the world through his photographs.Richard Moreno is publisher of Nevada Magazine and author of six Nevada-related travel books.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 178 pages
• Publisher: Stephens Press LLC (November 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 193217303X
• ISBN-13: 978-1932173031
• Product Dimensions: 14.9 x 9.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #397,076 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard Moreno is Director of Student Publications and an instructor in the English and Journalism Department at Western Illinois University. He was publisher of Nevada Magazine for 14 years and is the author of eleven books, including "A Short History of Carson City, Nevada," "Roadside History of Nevada," and "Illinois Curiosities." In 2007, he was awarded the Nevada Writer's Hall of Fame's Silver Pen Award, which recognizes emerging or mid-career writers who have shown substantial achievement in their work and a demonstrated connection with Nevada in either their subject matter or by living in the state.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Endless Nevada is Endless Pleasure, May 19, 2003

By 

Bob Hook (University of Idaho) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Endless Nevada (Cerca Book) (Hardcover)

By Sam Bauman, Nevada Appeal Staff Writer

Coffee table books are common as snowflakes in December, but every once in a while one comes along that is photographically ahead of the rest.
Such is the case with "Endless Nevada, a Photo Essay" by photographer Larry Prosor and Nevada magazine publisher and Nevada Appeal travel writer Richard Moreno.
From the brilliant book jacket of embossed gold of a man fishing in the Truckee River to the picture of a lonely wagon road in the Jarbidge Wilderness, this is a treat to the eye.
There's plenty to read as well as vistas to enjoy. John. L. Smith, Las Vegas Review-Journal columnist, offers a foreword. The late Robert Laxalt adds an introduction, ending on a magnificent panorama by Prosor of "Moonset Over Independence Ridge."
Each chapter is headed by a slightly washed-out photo across two pages, with a small photo insert. The first chapter is titled "Overview." In it, Moreno offers a fast-moving history of Nevada, from geological formation millions of years ago to 1931, when the Legislature approved gambling and the six-week divorce residency.
The next chapter, "The Land," is a stunning collection of Prosor photographs, such as an open trail in Thomas Canyon, Elko County, and a surreal vision of geysers in the Black Rock Desert. Subsequent chapters include "Searching for Wraiths," "The Past," "Mealtime," "The People," "Gathering Places," "The Places," "A Cowboy Needs a Poem," "The Cowboys," "America's Outback," "The Cities" and "End of the Road."
Moreno writes of the Basque immigrants and the opening of their hotels and boarding houses, catering to the Basque sheepherders who descended from the hills for a good meal and soft bed.
In "Gathering Places," Moreno writes:
"Saloons have long been rural Nevada's social clubs, political meeting halls and psychiatry couches. Intimate secrets, heated words, unkeepable promises and tall tales have all be passed at least a time or two over a beer. In most small Nevada towns, the local watering holes are the places where nearly everyone meets, at least sometime during the week, to swap gossip, make deals, or just socialize. If a small town is perceived as something organic, then the saloon is its soul. It is where opinions are formed, decisions are made and, occasionally, consensus occurs."
In the introduction to "The Places," an especially striking photo shows two tiny people atop a gigantic tower of rock in the Ruby Mountains. You know no helicopter brought them to that peak.
In "A Cowboy Needs a Poem," Moreno writes:
"Cowboys are part of what defines Nevada and the West. Despite having been overly romanticized in movies, books, songs and television shows, there is really something appealing about a cowboy. Perhaps it is the perceived freedom of living out under the stars, or the way the cowboy myth neatly parallels traditional American beliefs in self-determination and hard work. For whatever reasons, cowboys fascinate us."
This is only a brief description of the wealth of beauty in photographs and graceful prose that make up this book. [For the money], it's definitely one for the coffee table.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best coffee table book on Nevada?, December 16, 2008

By 

The Delite Rancher (Phoenix, Arizona) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Endless Nevada (Cerca Book) (Hardcover)

While there are quite a few similarly minded books out there, "Endless Nevada: A Photo Essay" rises to the top. This title balances the qualities of a coffee table book (a small amount of readable text with copious graphics) with essays that reflect a surprising amount of insightfulness, creativity and succinctness. First, the photographs are spectacular. The photos show a blend of natural and human subjects. Whether showing Reno, the Paiute or the Ruby Mountains, Larry Prosor's images are spectacular. Given the large size of the book, the photographic impact is increased. As a piece of eye candy, some may be tempted to skip the text. Eventually, however, that would be a mistake since the writing is just as powerful as the imagery. There are similarly minded books that give the sense that some eastern or foreign publisher hired an outsider to do something on the Battle Born State. In contrast, Richard Moreno's writing proves that he has street cred. It's not just his credentials which include being publisher of "Nevada Magazine" and author of several books on his home state including "The Roadside History of Nevada." He has insights that few can offer. More than anything else, it is the economy of his writing that most impresses me. Compared to previous readings on the Sagebrush State, Moreno has a talent for using relatively few words to cover the essential topics in a way that employs humor and a beauty of language. "Endless Nevada" flexes big guns as it even features a foreword by John L. Smith. Perhaps due to the author's residence in Reno, the book's emphasis leans on covering upstate. In terms of format, the book has chapters that thematically cover topics such as the people, the outback, the past and cities. The pacing works out so that for every dozen pages of stunning photographs, there are about four or five pages of text. While it may be the strongest book in its class, "Endless Nevada" seems to languish in terms of popularity. Granted, new copies are pricey, but at the time of review, a dozen used copies could be had for less than ten bucks. If you're looking for the ultimate overview of Nevada, here it is.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There's no state like Nevada..., December 2, 2010

By 

D Swaney (Big Lake, AK USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Endless Nevada (Cerca Book) (Hardcover)

No one but a poet or a very perceptive photographer could adequately describe Nevada, and this book just about makes the grade. This vast land of seemingly endless parallel basins and ranges, soaring peaks, desert wonderlands, timeless geology, and centuries of true human grit has no parallel in the USA. Having lived in both Las Vegas and Reno in the 1970s, I've explored just about every corner of the state, and I can definitively say that this book beautifully portrays much of the best of it - nearly every photo evokes emotional and spiritual memories. Of course, one volume can only capture a bit of Nevada, but that leaves a majority of this incredible state open for exploration by anyone who is inspired by the photos herein.