Bad Luck, Hot Rocks: Conscience Letters And Photographs From The Petrified Forest Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
The Petrified Forest National Park in Northeast Arizona protects one of the largest deposits of petrified wood in the world. Despite stern warnings, visitors remove several tons of petrified wood from the park each year, often returning these rocks by mail (sometimes years later), accompanied by a "conscience letter." These letters often include stories of misfortune attributed directly to their theft: car troubles, cats with cancer, deaths of family members, etc. Some writers hope that by returning these stolen rocks, good fortune will return to their lives, while others simply apologize or ask forgiveness. "They are beautiful," reads one letter, "but I can't enjoy them. They weigh like a ton of bricks on my conscience. Sorry…." Bad Luck, Hot Rocks documents this ongoing phenomenon, combining a series of original photographs of these otherworldly "bad luck rocks" with facsimiles of intimate, oddly entertaining letters from the park's archives.
Paperback: 144 pages
Publisher: The Ice Plant (November 30, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0989785912
ISBN-13: 978-0989785914
Product Dimensions: 0.5 x 7.5 x 10.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #600,204 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #111 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Field Guides > Rocks & Minerals #232 in Books > Science & Math > Agricultural Sciences > Forestry #297 in Books > Arts & Photography > Individual Artists > Artists' Books
I really like this book. For those who skimmed the summary above, it's a collection of letters written to the National Parks System as an apology for pilfering a piece of petrified wood (most people also returned a piece of wood as well, so you get to see the photo of that rock too).The photos of the petrified wood are beautiful. But the variety of the letters! So cool. Each letter seems like the start of its own mystery story... it's tantalizing that you only see the letter, and it makes you want to learn more about the person behind it. Honestly I guess I find the concept deeply humanizing - that people from all over the world want to make amends for their lapse in judgment. And I like that for each person, their apology seems to stem from a different place - some are upset at having bad luck (petrified wood superstition), some have been haunted by their bad choice/conscience, and some people don't seem too upset but still want to make it right. It's a cathartic collection of letters for anyone who feels they may have made a mistake in their life, no matter how small (so, it's cathartic for anyone).The only drawback is that this is not a hard cover book; for comparison, it's more like a soft-cover textbook with a firm paperboard for the cover. That said, the paper quality is quite nice and I really like the simple design. It's on my coffee table and I'm considering starting a tradition of sending it to a friend in need.
Based on an interesting story which is interwoven into Hot Rocks photos. A fun book that would make a great gift! Like nothing you've ever given before.
Bought as a Birthday gift for my niece, the Rock Thief. We enjoyed reading it. Good quality, arrived as expected.
Great book--one of my favorites this year.
Great book!
Funny true stories. Having lived in the area I can really appreciate this book.
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