Home to
former presidents and to movie stars, Palm Springs and its surrounding
deserts are among the fastest growing and wealthiest areas of the U.S. But
beneath the glitter lies a story of turmoil and a pattern of excess that
prefigures many of the issues that face the nation.

The Grumbling Gods surveys the history and allure of Palm Springs,
beginning with the Cahuilla Indians, the first historical residents of the
region. It includes accounts from the early explorers, a report of mysterious
shipwrecks amidst the sand dunes, and selections from the grimly rollicking
writings of Raymond Chandler. It penetrates the tinsel of casinos and the
placidity of gated golf communities to reveal the painful beauty of deserts
and mountains under assault.

Francisco Patencio, the last of the traditional Cahuilla Indians, warned
his white neighbors to be careful, that the grim gods inhabiting the canyons
around Palm Springs were angry. It is their grumbling, at once chilling and
prophetic, and yet sometimes humorous, that we hear from the pages of this
book.