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Lourie, following the format of his previous photo-essays (Yukon River, 1992, etc.), traces the route of the Rio Grande, third longest river in the US, from its origin high in the Colorado mountains, 1,885 miles to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way, historic and contemporary photographs tell of people and events past and present. The first-person narrative makes the past come alive; under discussion are ranchers, miners, and outlaws such as Billy the Kid and Pancho Villa. Lourie visits Taos Pueblos, describes the petroglyphs carved in the rocks, rafts, and camps along the shores, stops at a ghost town flooded when the Falcon Dam was created, interviews border patron officers, and ends at the azure waters of the gulf. Throughout the narrative runs an accomplished combination of history, geography, archaeology, and ecology. (Nonfiction. 10-12)
