MBR: The Environmental Studies Shelf 1/2
Midwest Book Review
Three Rivers
Margaret Atwood, et.al.
Harbour Publishing
PO Box 219, Madeira Park, BC, Canada, V0N 2H0
1550173650 $44.95 www.harbourpublishing.com
THREE RIVERS: THE YUKON'S GREAT BOREAL WILDERNESS explores a region of
vast wilderness previously unknown to the outside world, but is a major
environmental hotspot of modern times as it represents one of the last,
key pieces of the boreal region. With the Mackenzie Valley pipeline
proposal looming to threaten it, the Three Rivers region is in the news
and deserving of this coffee-table survey, which packs in color photos
and art and writing by major authors to remind of the region's
importance.
When the Rivers Run Dry
Fred Pearce
Beacon Press
25 Beacon Street, Boston, Ma 02108-2892
0807085723 $26.95 www.beacon.org
The title says it all: WHEN THE RIVERS RUN DRY: WATER - THE DEFINING
CRISIS OF THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY - and the chapters back it up,
providing a history and examination of more than thirty countries
around the world which face water issues. From Pakistan to the US and
China, Pearce draws upon a disparate set of experiences around the
world to consider the scientific, economic and historic dimensions of
world water crises and issues. It's easy to believe that with oceans on
many of our doorsteps, there will never be a real water crisis, but
WHEN THE RIVERS RUN DRY shows otherwise, documenting major water crises
and roads leading to future disasters. A 'must' for any serious
discussion on water rights, management, and ecology - and appropriate
for a range of readers from public libraries to college holdings.
Handbook of Water Use and Conservation
Amy Vickers
Waterplow
441 West St. Suite G, Amherst, MA 01002
1931579075 $99.95 www.waterplowpress.com
Water management is a big issue here in California, affecting
large-scale city planning projects right down to farms and individual
homeowners. California is a relatively dry state: its major rainfall
occurs only a few months out of the year. That's why the in-depth
HANDBOOK OF WATER USE AND CONSERVATION addresses so many relevant
issues on so many levels for California audiences in particular.
Managers, planners, engineers and policymakers alike receive an outline
of key steps to instigating a successful conservation program. Chapters
do more than outline these steps: they build upon them an entire
water-saving program, from ascribing and measuring customer water usage
and patterns to auditing homes, businesses and production sources alike
for water use and conservation effectiveness. Over a hundred tested
water-efficiency measures - not just ideas - for reducing long-term
demand are presented along with cost estimates, benefits, tables and
case studies, and more. No college-level California library should be
without; especially collections strong in urban studies, urban
planning, and conservation issues.
On the Ice
Gretchen Legler
Milkweed Editions
1011 Washington Avenue South, #300, Minneapolis, MN 55415-1246
157131282X $15.95 1-800-520-6455, www.milkweed.org
McMurdo Station, Antarctica is home to freezing temperatures, months of
nearly total darkness and regular near-hurricane force winds. It's also
home to a permanent station, McMurdo, and for a season was home to
author Gretchen Legler, who tells of this season and those who have
journeyed to Antarctica to escape life. Her visit was intended to
research the landscape; her book is about the crazy people she found
there. ON THE ICE is thus about an exploration few others will make:
you'll have to read the book to live her discoveries vicariously.
Green Inheritance
Anthony Huxley
University of California Press
2120 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, CA 94720
0520243595 $29.95 www.ucpress.edu
If GREEN INHERITANCE: SAVING THE PLANTS OF THE WORLD sounds like a
familiar topic, it's because it's a completely revised, expanded
edition of the prior WWF BOOK OF PLANTS. Any with an interest in
botany, conservation or plant history must have GREEN INHERITANCE: it
explores many topics relating to plant issues and conservation, from
the dwindling genetic base of the world's crops and the fading last
wild places where new plants may be discovered. GREEN INHERITANCE
expands upon its predecessor with new coverage on invasive plants,
plant diversity issues, herbal medicine, and more. A wealth of color
photos throughout and chapters linking human concerns with issues of
plant preservation make GREEN INHERITANCE of interest not only to the
college-level collection, but to any general-interest public library
strong in conservation titles.
Prophet of Dry Hill
David Gessner
Beacon Press
25 Beacon Street, Boston MA 02108-2892
0807085685 $19.95 www.beacon.org
Author David Gessner had always known of John Hay, who was his hero;
but he only befriended the older naturalist when he returned to his
childhood home on Cape Cod. His thought of writing a biography of the
naturalist changed when their conversations became a record of Hay's
naturalist knowledge, and thus THE PROPHET OF DRY HILL: LESSONS FROM A
LIFE IN NATURE isn't just a survey of Hay's life and personality but a
treasured collection of his seasoned observations on nature itself,
packing in much more detail about nature than any biography would have
achieved. Highly recommended.
Traces of Eden
Nishantha Gunawardena
TOE Books
5087 51st Street, NW, Rochester, MN 55901
0976997207 $34.95 www.tracesofeden.com
Humanity has disrupted the very elements of nature which it seeks to
preserve, yet the vastness of the U.S. and its ecosystems abide, as
TRACES OF NATURE: THE LAST OF THE AMERICAN WILDERNESS seeks to capture
forever under its book cover. Gorgeous color photos of American parks
and wild areas accompany Gunawardena's own evocative prose based on his
personal travels to these regions. From Alaska impressions to
California' Mojave Desert and the vanishing Everglades, each lovely and
often quite dramatic full-page color representation is faced with a
blend of personal observation, photographic insight and natural history
reflection. A gorgeous presentation; especially recommended for
gift-giving.
Ecosublime
Lee Rozelle
University of Alabama Press
PO Box 870380, Tuscaloosa, AL 35478-0380
081731492X $29.95 www.uapress.ua.edu
College-level collections strong in both literary and ecological
holdings will welcome a scholarly exploration of 19th century texts as
they relate to the changing ecological face of America in ECOSUBLIME:
ENVIRONMENTAL AWE AND TERROR FROM NEW WORLD TO ODDWORLD. In the 19th
century Edgar Poe and others represent the western wilderness as a
series of idealized landscapes, whether it be manmade gardens or
forests - which either upheld or misrepresented ecological space.
Modernists, in contrast, portray urban space as either wastelands or
garden environments. But contrasting with these two perspectives is a
new type of literary 'eco-advocate' which focuses not on ecological
paradises or makeovers, but ecological disasters... and which considers
both environmental and man-made eco-disasters in the making. Rozelle's
analysis finds evidence that the 'ecosublime' - nature experienced as
wonder or fear - reflects social and religious responses to both
nature and technological advancement.
Field Guide to Trees Of North America
Keith Rushforth
National Geographic
1145 - 17th Street NW, Washington DC 20036-4688
0792253108 $17.95 www.nationalgeographic.com
There are plenty of guides to trees on the market - but few offered
in a portable tote format which truly lends to pocket take-along. You
can put this in a backpack or even a back pocket: it's slim, compact,
yet full of color illustrations of the complete tree plus close-ups of
leaves, buds, flower and more. Keith Rushforth is an arboricultural
consultant and expert urban forester: his expertise and coverage are
extensively represented and provide a surprising amount of detail for
what initially looks to be light pocket tote reading.
ImageStream Press
8339 Carriage Hill Alcove, Savage, MN 55378
www.imagestreampress.com
Any read about wildlife refuges and parks with a visual eye to
understanding wildlife wonders will welcome three gorgeous titles from
photographer Jim Jamieson, which capture the unique attributes of three
wonderful areas. BOSQUE DEL APACHE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE: 48 HOURS
OF FLIGHT (0972912606, $22.95) captures the astonishing bird displays
and migrations of a refuge which attracts thousands of snow geese,
sandhill cranes, raptors and egrets, among others. Each photo is
accompanied by a description of the unique wonder being presented. THE
FLIGHT DECK: DIGITAL RHYTHMS OF OUR NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES
(0972912622, $29.95) blends digital photography with a survey of
conservation issues relating to the endangered and migratory creatures
of these wetlands, again creating a visual document of conservation.
Specifics on type of camera and settings accompany each of these lovely
shots to allow readers to perhaps absorb the basics of how to achieve
superior wildlife photography, with tips on how to get close to nature
and how to adjust for changing light settings blend with outstanding
bird displays. OUR NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE REFUGES: CAPTURING THE
RHYTHMS OF LIGHT AND LAND (0972912614, $34.95) accompanies more
stunning photos with perhaps the best all-around display of color and
nature photography insight yet, including the author's own comments
about how he shot each scene and compensated for challenging conditions
with equipment specs and first-person insights. These are top picks not
just for nature collections, but for any interested in how nature
photography is actually done.
The New GAIA Atlas Of Planet Management
Norman Myers & Jennifer Kent, Editors
Gaia Books; Octopus Books, Dist.
1865752097 $39.95 www.amazon.com
THE NEW GAIA ATLAS OF PLANET MANAGEMENT's previous editions have seen
regular feature as being among the top ten books on the environment
ever created; so if you're a public library, high school or
college-level collection interested in world environmental issues, you
must have this. It's a completely revised, enlarged edition which
reflects a decade of change in both international environmental issues
and political responses: maps, charts, and discussions of everything
from global energy to evolutionary potentials and living oceans place
the latest research and ecological thinking at the user's fingertips.
The result's a big, gorgeous display of detail and updates which are a
'must' for any reference collection serious about the environment.
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Midwest Book Review
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