By Geoff Schumacher
Vanishing Village, by Evan Blythin, the third title from CityLife Books, is set to be released June 1.
Blythin, a retired communications professor from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, has written an insightful and entertaining book about the community in which he has lived for several decades, Blue Diamond, Nevada. Here is a summary:
“Just a few miles beyond the bright lights of the Las Vegas Strip and the surrounding suburbs, a quiet village vigorously resists the insistent pull of the metropolis. The villagers believe the modern way, the urban way is not necessarily the best way. They want to make their own rules and set their own standards, insisting that one size does not fit all. In Vanishing Village, Evan Blythin explores the history and folkways of his longtime home, illuminating the enduring values and pastimes of small-town living. But this lifestyle, Blythin reveals, is at risk of extinction, as the villager fends off relentless demands to conform and moderrnize.”
Rep. Dina Titus of Nevada had this to say about Vanishing Village:
“Simultaneously entertaining and informative, Vanishing Village is a hard book to put down. Blythin reminds us of the value of connecting with our fellow man if we hope to maintain our sanity, our humanity even, in the disappearing village.”
After publishing two works of fiction, Restless City and Blue Vegas, CityLife Books is releasing its first nonfiction title. A mash-up of memoir, journalism and sociology, Vanishing Village offers an enlightening vision of an alternative to the urban/suburban angst that nags at so many Las Vegans.