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Show B-4 C A R E D A C E L A R A C E R O P E D P I X Y E T T E W A N E E C O N S O D A T A L C S A V I A N Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, June 27-30, 2020 The Park Record D O G M A A D A P T F I S H E A T A W L A N E Y O N R A D D C S T O T E N R N O F F M O R S L A D I W D H T N A R O P A T C B S N T A V P E S Q R U H I O D D E L C D M S A U G I N C H A W S E S U R N S Z O O K I M M I E N T A N K S E K R E M A T A R I M S T I C C K E N S F E A R H I G H S O C T A C T S C A O N N S P E E T E A R E O L E C I A B Y F E E R E E L H A O N G T D O W B I D I N E G S S K S O U A N T C I A C C H R A C C H H B E E I R E D T D A Y H A S S A P P O S R U N K D I E B A D A R S H A R M I L E A N I M T O F I I C E E L A R G E R O O S E S S E S E L S F L I E A I P E D Z I N E A D O SERVING ALL YOUR FRAMING NEEDS FOR OVER 30 YEARS! Large Selection of Ready-Made Frames Easy Parking | Convenient Location 1240 Iron Horse Drive PARK CITY 435–649–3640 NOW OPEN! N E S T S P S A T S S T S E S I G N Award-winning, Park City-based writer finds a balance between fact and fiction Barber compares her new book to a ‘tightrope walk’ SCOTT IWASAKI The Park Record Although award-winning author and Park City resident Phyllis Barber has written nine books and dozens of essays and short stories throughout her career, she still enjoys the challenge of intertwining historical fact with fictional characters. “The hardest thing for me to do was find a balance, and I had to keep reminding myself that I was writing a novel and not a nonfiction treatise,” Barber said about her new book, “The Desert Between Us.” “It’s a tightrope walk.” “The Desert Between Us,” which is available at Dolly’s Bookstore, King’s English and Amazon, is a love story set in the polygamous Mormon town of St. Thomas, Nevada, between 1867 and 1870. The story follows the relationship between an angry Mormon husband, Charles Weston Hughes, his third wife Sophia, and a former Civil War soldier and salt purveyor Geoffrey Scott, who is sent to the Southwest with a camel named Adababa to help build what would eventually become the base for Route 66. “I did a lot of research of the expedition that helped scout the area to see if they could build roads from Albuquerque, New Mexico, to Needles, California,” said Barber, who was inducted into the Nevada Writers’ Hall of Fame in 2005. The idea of camels in the southwest kickstarted Barber’s research that led to writing the book. After the Civil War, the United States imported 75 camels from the Middle East to help traverse the rugged and IT’S YARD SALE SEASON MAKE SURE YOUR NEXT YARD SALE IS A SUCCESS! $ POST YOUR UPCOMING YARD SALE, ESTATE SALE, OR NEIGHBORHOOD SALE IN THE CLASSIFIEDS! (LAST PAGES OF THE SCENE SECTION) CALL JENNIFER AT 435.649.9014 ext 125 TO SET UP YOUR AD & RECEIVE FOUR FREE YARD SALE SIGNS! unexplored territory, she said. “I read a little snippet somewhere, and the more I learned about the camels, the more I decided they needed to be part of a novel,” Barber said. Using the military expedition helped Barber expand the story’s scope from the small town of St. Thomas to the rest of the United States. “I wanted it to be put in a national context, because there was so much happening at that time,” she said. “Not only was the Mormon church being founded, the Civil War was ending and John Brown was trying to end slavery. Putting in these elements helped me create a larger context for myself and my readers.” Some of the book’s characters such as Geoffrey Scott, who is always referred to by his full name, are figments of Barber’s imagination. “He’s based on a conglomerate of people,” she said. “He isn’t Mormon, but he is an abolitionist.” Charles Hughes, on the other hand, was based on one of Barber’s ancestors. “It’s interesting how little tendrils that you want to put together form from the research that you do,” she said. Barber, a recipient of the Association of Writers and Writing Programs prize for creative nonfiction, said writing a purely fictional character like Geoffrey Scott was much easier than writing about the Mormon aspect. “It’s because I know a lot about the Mormon culture,” she said. “I was raised in the church, and the culture is very deep in me. So, when I was writing the book, I didn’t want to come across as though I was taking sides. I just wanted to write a story.” In addition to being raised Mormon, Barber’s early childhood was spent in Boulder City, Nevada, which is 50 miles away from St. Thomas. Throughout her childhood, St. Thomas was covered by Lake Mead after the construction of Hoover Dam, she said. “St. Thomas always interested me, and I didn’t not know it was a polygamous settlement, even though I had ancestors Continued from B-1 Fun run changes to those who register from afar, Hind said. Adding to the Fun Run’s celebratory nature, Hind encourages runners to post photos of them wearing face masks on the Park City 4th of July 5K Fun Run Instagram and Facebook pages PHOTO BY JENNIFER LABRIZZI Award-winning author and Park City resident Phyllis Barber poses for photo with a friend. Camels that were used to help the military explore the Southwest after the end of the Civil War are part of the inspiration for Barber’s new book, “The Desert Between Us.” who lived there,” Barber said. “I just thought it was an interesting community. That’s how I got interested in the whole area.” “The Desert Between Us” also examines the relationship between Sophia and Hughes’ first wife, Harriett. “After I found out that I had come from polygamous ancestors, I read a lot about polygamous situations, and I found that some wives got along pretty well, and some didn’t,” she said. “So I thought this would be a good chance to put in one wife who just doesn’t work out, and then add another wife who is very loving and accepting.” Barber spent nearly eight years researching and writing “The Desert Between Us.” “It was basically plugging my nose and jumping into the water,” she said with laugh. “I didn’t have a big plan. I just knew the camels and St. Thomas interested me. So it was wonderful to have the book published.” with hashtags #PC4thFunRun, #PCTraditionGoesOn. The Fourth of July Fun Run was first organized by Cole Sport founder Gary Cole and a group of his friends 38 years ago. “His kids were part of our programs, and the idea was to promote wellness, fitness, family and competitive fun, all the things our club stands for,” Hind said. Gail Barber, Park City Ski & Snowboard development director, has seen the Fun Run gain a massive following over the years. “Last year we had more than 1,000 participants, and as the L-R: Kelli, Richard, Aaron © 2020 Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Member SIPC. SUP031 CRC 2639259 08/19 Parkite Phyllis Barber’s new historic fiction novel, “The Desert Between Us,” is a love story set in the polygamous town of St. Thomas, Nevada, between 1867 and 1870. Barber began her research for the book eight years ago. For information visit phyllisbarber.squarespace.com. town grew, the run grew,” she said. “We now have grandparents, parents, kids and grandkids who run. And we always encourage runners, walkers, joggers and participants of all abilities to participate.” Hind said keeping the Fun Run alive was a top priority for Park City Ski & Snowboard this year. “This has been a difficult and challenging time for so many people in our community,” she said. “So we thought it was important to be able to hold on to and harness a tradition that makes us all feel the spirit of our town, and maintain some sort of normalcy.” BUY IT SELL IT TRADE IT RENT IT LOCALLY! When our community thrives, we all prosper. Prosperity is about so much more than money. It’s about living well in a community that is healthy and stable. At Morgan Stanley, we feel fortunate to live in a place that is supported by so many worthy service organizations. Their good deeds make everyone’s life richer. COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA PRESS The Potashner Group at Morgan Stanley Richard Potashner Senior Vice President Financial Advisor richard.potashner@morganstanley.com Aaron Rokeach Financial Advisor aaron.rokeach@morganstanley.com Kelli Brown Senior Registered Client Associate kelli.brown@morganstanley.com 60 East South Temple, 20th Floor Salt Lake City, UT 84111 801-322-7683 • 800-733-9036 advisor.morganstanley.com/ the-potashner-group To set up your personalized classified ad contact Jennifer at the Park Record 435.649.9014 ext. 125 Monday-Friday or anytime at ParkRecord.com |