The Edge of the continent
A California trilogy
Volume one is still available, a few copies of volume two and three are available on thriftbooks.com and amazon!
The first volume is about Northern California, the wet part of the state, the green part, a place where redwoods reign and fog is common. From 2009-2013, Jacqueline Suskin lived in Humboldt County, on the edge of the continent, writing poetry. In this collection, we come to know her as a lover of land, a steward, and an ecstatic earth worshiper. This book is a personal narrative, a selection of formative memories, but most importantly it’s a shared compendium of terrain, an atlas of verse that offers each reader a retreat, and a pathway to access this sacred landscape that provides us with so much.
The second volume is about Southern California, the heavily populated part of the state, the sprawling metropolis, and the thirsty land that supports so many people. Jacqueline Suskin lived in Los Angeles in 2013-2019. This book explores her transition into city life after leaving the majesty of Northern California forests and the fulfillment of communal off-the-grid living. In this collection, we move through the struggle of finding beauty, purpose, and joy in urbanity, and in doing so discover the infinite inspiration that exists in a place as unique as Los Angeles.
The third volume is about Joshua Tree―the dry, sparsely populated landscape known for its strange topography and spiritual pull. Jacqueline Suskin spent winters on a ranch at the far edge of the desert for many years, caring for mustangs and goats, walking the long sand roads in solitude. This book explores the richness of her experience in a place many view as barren, exposing its unique offerings through personal narrative. In this collection, Suskin invites readers into the often unseen magic of the desert, a place where silence and open space bring gifts of potent healing and ancient insight to those who are willing to sit still and listen.
