Book Description
The Elusive Eden charts the historical development of California, beginning with the evolution of the landscape and climate and the arrival of the first inhabitants, the Indians, through social, political, and environmental controversies of the present and the future. The book portrays a land of remarkable richness and complexity, settled by waves of people from diverse cultures. The text is organized chronologically into 10 parts, each developing a major theme or issue for a particular period in California's history. The first chapter of each part is a narrative that spotlights and dramatizes the personal responses of significant individuals at critical moments of historical change. The authors stress issues of current importance such as: ethnic groups, women, environmental history and social and cultural history.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book!.......2007-03-22
I used this book so much in my California and Politics class. It is very descriptive and helpful. The headings make it easy to study, and know exactly what you are reading about. There are lots of interesting pictures, as well as political cartoons. It was a very helpful book in understanding the diverse and colorful history of California. Read it and check it out for yourself.
History of California.......2000-08-08
I had to use this book for a class I took at the University of California, Santa Barbara (History 177 -- Summer 1999). I thought the book was great in certain areas (prehistoric times, geography, and the native peoples), but deficient in others (water development, railroads, Bear Flag Revolt, gold rush, automobile). Also, California's history is much too complicated to be crammed into this book -- the author should have divided it up regionally, or on a time line to allow himself to get more in depth with this material. Otherwise, if you are interested in a good, yet incomplete overview of the history of the Golden State, read this book!
Elusive Eden Captured.......2000-02-15
History can be exciting, especially when the high points are rendered with such immediacy and clarity. California is both a microcosm and macrocaosm of American History. Richard Rice makes this connection resonant from the original Sutter's Mill gold rush to the current Silicon Valley "gold rush". The themes that define California are U.S. history writ large. Rice lets the reader appreciate California from a variety of personal perspectives: Henry Dana's in "Two Years Before The Mast", Leland Stanford and the other "robber barrons", Hiram Johnson and the reformers, into world war two and the Nisei internees, down through Reagan and the Brown family, and into current times. The history of water rights, which was the basis of the movie Chinatown, becomes a compelling and more accurate story here. The lucid prose is admirably supported by evocative photography. Discover California as it really was and is.
Book Description
From the imagination of best-selling author Douglas Rushkoff,one of the most icono-clastic and acclaimed minds of our era, comes agraphic novel series that exposes the "real" Bible as it was actuallywritten, and reveals how its mythic tales are repeated today. Young Alan Stern may have created life -- inside his laptop. Now, he'sabout to discover the terrible consequences of playing God.
Customer Reviews:
Just as good as the first volume.......2007-07-06
If you liked where the first volume was going, pick this up. It is a great read.
Customer Reviews:
1st rate biography.......2005-08-22
Over the past 25 years I have read dozens of biographies. Most are not much more than a chronological listings of a person's accomplishments with little depth or analysis. This is one of the few biographies I have read that helps us understand the person which is what a real biography should do. But it is more than a biography. It helps us understand the life and the times of Tom McCall. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to get to know Tom McCall, Oregon political history of the mid 20th century and the environmental movement.
Tom McCall's Story Is Oregon's Story.......2003-07-27
More than two decades after his death, almost three decades after he left the governor's office, Tom McCall remains the defining figure of Oregon politics. It was during his tenure in office (1967-1975) that Oregon gained its reputation as a national leader in innovative public policy.
The McCall era saw Oregon protect virtually all of its beaches for public use; adopt the first bottle bill in the nation; clean up the Willamette River; adopt the country's first statewide land-use planning system; and much more. Although many of these concepts did not originate with McCall, he was the catylist and provided the leadership to make them a reality.
This era is brilliantly chronicled by Brent Walth in "Fire At Eden's Gate." Walth, a reporter for the Eugene Register-Guard, and now The Oregonian, knows the state and its leadership well, and this allows him to tell the McCall story with comprehensiveness and clarity. But this is more than a political biography; Walth also chronicles the story of McCall's celebrated family (including grandfather Thomas W. Lawson, "the Copper King"), his path to the governor's office, and his sometimes troubled personal life.
Anyone interested in understanding Oregon public life in the second half of the 20th century should enjoy and benefit from reading this well-crafted biography.
Where have all the Tom McCall's gone??.......2003-02-17
This biography of the modern day father of Oregon, makes this native long for days past. For days when Oregon was a leader on the national politcla/cultural/social scene.
Walth does an excellent job detailing not only the political successes of one of Oregon's greatest politicians, but also of the man's personal shortcomings.
I am not certain how much appeal this book will have to non-Oregonian's or people who are unfamiliar with the Pacific Northwest, but I feel that it should be required reading by all students of political science attending Oregon universities.
Our state legislators who are constantly invoking McCall's name and legacy to advance their own political gains, would do well to read this biography. Our elected officials of today pale in comparison to the individual giants of years past.
Oregonians Explained.......2003-02-09
I am a Native Oregonian living on the east coast and this book helped me understand why I feel like a fish out of water in the midst of uncontrolled suburban sprawl, minimal recycling facilities, and chemical pollution violations are repeatedly ignored by local politicians.
Mr. Walth's book was exciting to read. I recommend it to anyone seeking to understand Oregonians and why we're so proud of the place we call home. Brent Walth tells the story of how Tom McCall gave us that pride.
biography equally about Oregon as it is about McCall.......1999-10-30
Deserves a place in every hotel and bed/breakfast gift shop across Oregon -- for visitors to the Pacific Northwest to pick up. Walth tells the McCall story and in doing so coaches the reader about the things Oregonians are the most passionate about. Most of us cannot travel to another state and name their most famous governor -- yet McCall's legacy is often mentioned by domestic and international visitors to Oregon.
Book Description
Backed by the resources of Independent Feature Project/West, co-authors Nicole Shay LaLoggia and Eden H. Wurmfeld have written the definitive low-budget production manual. Using examples from the Miramax film Swingers, this comprehensive manual offers the independent filmmaker a single volume reference covering every aspect of making a film: script rights and rewrites, financing, breakdown, scheduling and budgeting, pre-production, production, postproduction, and distribution. A resource guide listing useful references and organizations, as well as a glossary, complete this manual. The companion CD-ROM features interviews with important figures in the independent film industry, including Billy Bob Thornton and Ang Lee. Forms that are illuminated in the text are also included on the CD for ease of use.
Independent Feature Project/West is non-profit membership organization for independent filmmakers. IFP/West provides its members with access to industry leaders, professional advice, discounts, and rental equipment. IFP/West also provides a comprehensive educational program covering all aspects of the filmmaking process from script to post-production, to marketing and distribution. Since its inception, IFP/West has become the primary support network for filmmakers in Southern California and is a strong advocate for diversity and innovation in filmmaking.
Written by two independent producers, based on their experience with successful independent films
Includes aCD-ROM with QuickTime versions of interviews with leading independent filmmakers such as Billy Bob Thornton and Ang Lee as well as frequently used production forms in reusable template format
Extensive resource guide of references, organizations, and terms
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Resource.......2003-11-13
The IFP/WEST Filmmakers Manual walks you through the line producing responsibilities of the movie SWINGERS. Written with detailed information including example budgets, call sheets and production notes. The book also provides useful situational anecedotes from the production.
This is the best resource for production management in independent filmmaking I have found to date.
Very Good Resource for Creative Producers of Indie Films.......2003-01-27
For the aspiring producer of independent films, the "IFP/West Independent Filmmaker's Manual" is a great book to read. It gives the reader a solid overview of virtially every stage of the production process.
With the production of "Swingers" still fresh in their minds, writers Nicole Shay LaLoggia and Eden H. Wurmfield give the reader an insider's view of making that all important first film. Although "Swingers" was made on a tiny budget and without the benefit of the Screen Actors Guild's new low budget agreements, the film proved successful within a fiercely competitive independent film market.
These producers had what it takes to get a small film made without the benefit of a big budget or big name stars. Since most of the readers of this book are probably starting off in a similar situation, their insights are especially helpful. Veteran producers (while the writers may be considered veterans now) often lose touch with what it's like to be a new producer.
It's also important to note that these producers simply did not roll over and die after making, "Swingers." At this writing, Eden H. Wurmfeld is a finalist for the Motorola Producer's Award, part of the IFP's Independent Spirit Awards for "Kissing Jessica Stein" and "Fanci's Persuasion." In short, these producers are out there in the trenches and speak from not just knowledge, but experience.
A very helpful feature of the book are a series of checklists, to remind the producer of his or her daily responsibilities. Producing is a high pressure job that is very detail orientated. I wish this resource had been available when I started producing a few years before this book was published.
On the two CD-ROMs included (one formatted for PCs, the other for Macs), you get a series of very worthwhile extras. This includes an ample supply of production forms and interviews with prominent people in the independent film world. The interviews include Geoffrey Gilmore (Sundance Film Festival), Kasi Lemmons (writer/director of "Eve's Bayou," the #1 independent film of 1997), Kevin Smith (writer/director of "Clerks), Jon Favreau ("Swingers") and Billy Bob Thornton ("Slingblade"). Also included are interviews with veteran producers Ted Hope and Christine Vachon. These are all great for the independent filmmaker, particularly if you're trying to make deeply personal films to play at film festivals and on the "art house" circuit. If you're just interested in making B-grade genre films, these will be less helpful.
My one complaint about the included production forms is that they include a navigational box at the upper left hand corner that says, "Return to Contents," that can't be removed unless you have the full version of Adobe Acrobat.
LaLoggia and Wurmfeld's book demystifies the role of the "creative producer" on independent feature films. However, if you're interested in a nuts and bolts book on the role of a "line producer" (which is essentially a production manager and not one who develops a project from scratch), this book may still be beneficial, but perhaps less so. This is also true for people interested solely in producing mass market films for the major studios. If you don't yet know the difference or are trying to figure out which way to go, this book is a great jumping off point.
Dive in, the water's fine.
Most Disappointing.......2002-04-24
This book was a big disappointment. It seems half the pages are just print outs of forms, budgets, etc. The information tucked between the pages of forms is the same stuff found in many more comprehensive and readable books. It seemed to be written by a computer, not a person. The index is weak as is the glossary. These folks made one movie and thought they could tell the rest of the world how it's done. The hubris is only exceeded by the vapidity. Sent mine back for a refund.
No Kevin Smith interviews, Pleeeeeze........2000-09-12
The idea of an interview with Kevin Smith being a "bonus" is not appealing. Gimme REAL directors like Sydney Lumet or Jane Campion.
Useful For Some.......2000-02-29
I was slightly disappointed by this book. But I had heard so much hype about it that anything short of a divine masterpiece was going to be a let-down. I will however strongly recommend this book to someone who is knowledgable about film, has a worthwhile project, and wants to know how to get it off the ground because what the authors do is detail how they went about making their indie film Swingers. Many will find this useful as it will tell you how to go about organizing, scheduling, budgeting, and then shooting your project. Anything you could possibly need to know is discussed. The one thing that I found the most enjoyable though was the cd it comes with that contains interviews with Kevin Smith (director of Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, and Dogma) and others.
Average customer rating:
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American Eden: Landscape Architecture of the Pacific West
Michael Leccese
Manufacturer: Vilo International
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Landscape | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Garden Design | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Landscape | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Regional | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books | Canada | Middle Atlantic | Midwest | New England | Pacific Northwest | South | Southwest | West
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 2845760051 |
Book Description
With many illustrations and a well-documented text by one of the finest specialists in American landscape architecture, this book features Lawrence Halprin, Peter Walker, Tovert Murase and Martha Schwartz.
Customer Reviews:
Discovering Our Importance TO Nature.......2007-03-16
Dagget's first book, "Beyond the Rangeland Conflict, Toward a West That Works," was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. His latest work, "Gardeners of Eden: Rediscovering Our Importance To Nature" ($24.95 in large-size paperback from The Thatcher Charitable Trust and EcoResults!) expands on his alternative view to the "leave it alone" philosophy that has governed much thinking about the environment in the last few decades. According to a press release, EcoResults!, of which Dagget is CEO, is "a nonprofit foundation that finds funding for land managers seeking to turn their operations into a means to restore and sustain environmental values."
Just what that means is the subject of "Gardeners of Eden," a lively and personal exploration of how a new kind of environmentalism is being born among those who see themselves, and their skills, as part of the ecosystem, part of nature.
The huge mistake we modern humans have made, Dagget insists, is in thinking that "the only way we can really heal the land is to protect it from impacts created by humans: to 'leave it alone.' This widely held assumption is why, when we talk of healing the land, we invariably talk of protecting it, of preserving it. ... That's why articles that deal with land issues treat the word 'protecting' as having the same meaning as 'healing' or 'restoring.' It is why those articles never explain how protecting the land will heal it."
The assumption that healthy land is land humans leave alone is based, he writes, on another assumption: "that all environmental problems are caused by humans. ... We don't think of butterflies or deer or wolves as creating environmental problems."
But, says Dagget, there is a group of what he fondly calls "Lost Tribe gardeners" whose actions have benefited the land, have made it "outperform the Leave-It-Alone approach." To these people, such as Tony and Jerrie Tipton, who solved an "eco disaster" in the Nevada desert, the word "protection" is another name for "abandonment."
A Nevada mining operation had left a 300-foot pile of crushed rock "polluted with cyanide and covered with salt." The Tiptons "dragged a length of railroad rail over the part of the pile they intended to treat, breaking up the salt crust. ... Then they scattered the seed, spread the hay and straw, and released the cattle. The cows ate most of the hay and a little of the straw, and what they didn't eat, they trampled into the rocks along with the seeds and the microbe-rich organic fertilizer they provided from their guts." Years later native plants are still growing there, in an area with less an inch of rain.
Early in Dagget's career he demonstrated for Earth First! and in 1992 was named to a list of top grass-roots activists by the Sierra Club. But since then Dagget has come to realize that an environmentalism that insisted on defining healthy land as that least touched by human hands -- even if those land tracts were devoid of life -- simply made no sense. His book cites many examples of human intervention helping ecosystems thrive by their being used to grow food or raise cattle.
Careful management is needed, but that's the point of gardening.
Copyright 2007 Chico Enterprise-Record. Used by permission.
One of those rare books..........2006-05-21
There a few books that conjure a simultaneously bizarre reaction within a soul: like a biblical epiphany, Dagget stirs new paradigms that made me so excited that I could barely put down the book to complete my daily tasks. Yet, I could not turn the page to the next chapter because the elegant revelations of our place in nature evoked so much thought and "wow", that muddying the gift of a previous chapter with another would do it no justice.
Tom Bean's photography is enlightening and beautiful; a great match for a great book. Environmentalists take heed--if you think we don't belong here, you'll find that you are more alien than those who put their soul's work into the land.
This book is in my life's top ten list!
Rev. D.M. North Dakota
A persuasive concept presented in a passable fashion.......2006-04-05
Dan Daggot has done an excellent synthesis of a number of "projects" to support the book's theme. The theme is that human interaction can be very beneficial to natural systems, as opposed to the common view that humans always degrade any environment they affect.
The sited examples of positive environmental change created by human influence range from vast changes to smaller reclaimation projects. Creation of bison plains in North America and the diverse rainforest landscape of parts of Amazonia are examples of very large area improvements. Fire and food harvesting techniques are tools sited as methods used by pre-Columbian natives that improved the environment. An example of smaller modern project is the reclaimation of mine spoils by the (counterintuitive) use of cattle grazing. The cattle make changes to the inhospitable spoils that allow native vegetation to return.
There is a distracting tone about some of the book where the author uses jargon or strange languague. For instance, he uses the term "Lost Tribe" for those that apply the concept that is the theme of the book. That tone seems to imply that he thinks the idea of actively modifying the environment to benefit nature is an underdog position and will not be accepted by those in power (Bureaucrats with regulatory authority or grant money). Hopefully, that is not a self fulfilling prophesy!
The photography of the book is excellent. The book could have been improved, in this reader's opinion if the passages printed in the margins were individual photo captions instead of reprints from the main text. Nonetheless, the photos support the text.
Overall the book is inspirational and presents a powerful idea for environmental improvement. The book is also fun to read and highly recommended by this reader.
A new conflict out of an old one.......2005-09-20
In his new book Dan Dagget describes a new conflict over management of western resources. Instead of the tired old set-piece of preservation versus extraction, we now have a fresh, new struggle between Leave-It-Aloners--as Dagget terms those who believe that the best thing for humans to do with land is to leave it alone and let nature take its course--and the Lost Tribe, who are busy reversing land degradation through use.
Conflict, writes Dagget, is one of the major economic sectors to emerge from America's public lands. And Dagget himself is definitely a player. In the 1990s, he broke ranks with the advocacy-oriented Sierra Club on the grounds that results on the land counted more than prescriptions or beliefs. He began to follow the experiments of people such as Tony and Jerrie Tipton in Nevada, who were restoring grasslands on sterile, salt-encrusted mine tailings with cattle and hay where conventional prescriptions of technology and rest from grazing had failed utterly.
Using cattle to restore land, Dagget found, collided with what people "knew": that cattle could not restore land, they invariably degraded it. Therefore the grassland atop the mine tailings was invisible or irrelevant. It was, he says, like showing pictures of dog tricks to a cat fanatic.
The book is a wide-ranging and rapid survey of the remarkable achievements of some the Lost Tribers, which will be engaging and hopeful news to most. The theme running through is that human management has been crucial factor in creating many of the environments that we mostly now regard as natural. By ignoring or denying our participation in the landscape, we have become aliens--but in following the examples of the Lost Tribe, there are substantial opportunities to change our attitudes and behaviors, and become more native to our landscapes.
These are powerful and deep issues. Dagget's Lost Tribers are practicing a kind of interdependence that offers tremendous opportunities to regenerate degraded lands and communities--opportunities that didn't exist in the old set-piece between extraction and preservation.
An understanding of basic ecosystem processes underlies much of what the Lost Tribers have accomplished, and many of Dagget's readers might benefit from a basic description of the water cycle, for example, or how the biological carbon cycle operates differently in moist environments than in seasonally arid ones. But his book, outlining as it does this new conflict emerging from the old, stale one, will be a powerful creative force for change.
Amazon.com
M.F.K. Fisher, Kathleen Hill's friend and colleague, gave Kathleen the standard good advice: that she write about what she knows. For Kathleen, that meant the good life. Her background was in culinary arts, and her husband, Gerald, was experienced in travel and history writing. Together, they've taken on the Monterey and Carmel region in this delightful guide--introducing an area of sumptuous beauty, incomparable wineries, superior shopping, premier dining and lodging, and a vast array of other assorted pleasures.
They know all the best wineries, and include extras--such as Bonny Doon's recipe for grilled peaches with raspberry purée. They know where to go for the finest artichokes and local albacore salad, how to tour the world of John Steinbeck, and where to stay in Queen-Anne-Victorian-mansion-splendor, with decadent breakfasts, afternoon teas, and night-time champagne. In short, they know everything that's worth knowing about living life to the fullest, and they share it--complete with street maps, festival details, and comprehensive history--so you can reap the Monterey and Carmel bounty too. --Stephanie Gold
Book Description
This guide gives an intimate view of the Monterey and Carmel area. It includes walking and driving tours that lead to galleries and vineyards; dining and shopping options that leave visitors wanting and buying more; and recipes from chefs to recreate local cuisine at home.
Book Description
After Eden is a provocative novel that examines the meaning of home and homelessness among people who see such issues as more than abstractions. In a story populated by Pomo Indians, Euro-American ranchers and vintners, and Mexican American migrant laborers, Valerie Miner deftly juxtaposes differing cultural views of wilderness, trespassing, and home. Her dramatic novel is contemporary, while reflecting on two centuries of change in a seemingly Edenic place.
Book Description
In the tradition of his New York Times bestseller, Napa, James Conaway picks up the story he began a decade ago. The Far Side of Eden offers "a fascinating look at the political side of the wine revolution that put California's Napa Valley on the world map" (Miami Herald). Now, Conaway reveals, Napa is awash in dollars generated by the boom economy and the social ambitions it inspired. The valley is beset by new arrivals determined to have vineyards of their own and by cult-wine producers in thrall to fabulously expensive "rocket juice" (cabernet sauvignon) that few locals can afford - while established families wish to hold on to the old ways, and camp followers get caught up in the glamour of it all. Conaway, long known for his controversial, compulsively readable social reporting, here "indicts the wave of new-money millionaires from Silicon Valley, who have brought with them gaudy displays of wealth -- building so-called 'McMansions' and planting 'vanity vineyards'" (Los Angeles Times). "A cautionary tale . . . [with] a seductive pull" (San Francisco Chronicle), The Far Side of Eden takes us to the frontlines of America's ongoing conflicts over money, land, and power to tell a story that has ramifications for us all.
Customer Reviews:
Refreshing and to the point.......2007-03-27
James Conway cuts to the chase in new money vs established money in a battle for land in Napa Valley. Detailed stories of conflicts between new money mentality of expand at any cost and old money in keeping things in check.
Good story lines. I hope James returns with an updated book as this was written in 2002 and much has changed since.
Well written???.......2003-10-14
Reading the other reviews, I cannot help but shake my head in astonishment...."Well Written"??? Ideas move in and out of paragraphs with no real logical flow of ideas. Few dates are presented to help the reader follow the timetable (which is likely because the scenes are re-sequenced for dramatic effect). I am an avid reader of literature, but found myself constantly rereading passages to try and decipher the idea being presented or the scene being described. I finally decided that the editor either gave up or never tried. Much of the book reads more like a stream of consciousness than a documentation of events witnessed by the author.
Furthermore, this book is an amalgam of ad hominem attacks on everyone who dares to make money in the wine industry. Those with family money are dismissed as "lucky spermers" unless like, Peter Mennen, they use their money to stop big business. Mennen is portrayed as the noble hero but seems to be more a naive idealist. Certainly, there are forces of good and bad in any capitalist industry, but let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater. Ending vineyard development would lead to one of two things - more houses in place of vineyards or higher and higher prices for vintners as the scarcity increased their profits. Certainly, there is a middle ground yet Conaway, by following the bull-headed extremists, would have us believe that there can be no compromise.
Check this book out from the library if you must read it, but support more even-handed works with your dollars.
How can he type with a massive chip on his shoulder?.......2003-10-03
This is a book for people who hate Starbucks and complain incessantly about gentrification (while drinking expensive boutique coffee and loving the appreciation in their real estate). After reading half of it I got tired of the constant pot-shots and nasty, one-sided characterizations and had to put it down.
I'm not clear on who the author approves of, but he's clearly against anyone who lives, builds, or conducts business in Napa Valley -- plus anyone crass enough to actually visit for a weekend and enjoy the place.
If you are a part of the Napa community then you might enjoy the gossipy anecdotes in this book. If you are a hard-core, disgruntled environmentalist then you might find validation for your views. But if you are just interested in the region and land issues in general then you'll find a pissy, overblown screed that irritates more than it informs.
Sometimes the Truth Hurts.......2003-08-11
As a Napa resident and former winemaker, I can say that this book truly pulls back the curtains to expose the overinflated egos that are rapidly transforming our valley into just another trendy, overpriced tourist trap.
It is a much more entertaining and accurate read than Kolpan's Sense of Place which basically parrots Coppola's publicity agent's "approved" history. This is a must have book for anyone interested in what goes on behind the scenes in the Napa Valley.
Some interesting points, but heavily biased.......2003-01-11
As a former Napa vinter, I eagerly looked forward to reading Conway's excursion into my home county. While there are interesting ideas in the book, they lurk beneath the soil like potatoes, never springing forth to see the light of day. Many of my neighbors (and, I should add, close friends) are presented in this book as gross parodies; this, I suppose, might be expected from an outsider to the region, but I had a difficult time getting past these rough characterizations.
Book Description
Irrigation came to the arid West in a wave of optimism about the power of water to make the desert bloom. Mark Fiege's fascinating and innovative study of irrigation in southern Idaho's Snake River valley describes a complex interplay of human and natural systems. Using vast quantities of labor, irrigators built dams, excavated canals, laid out farms, and brought millions of acres into cultivation. But at each step, nature rebounded and compromised the intended agricultural order. The result was a new and richly textured landscape made of layer upon layer of technology and intractable natural forces-one that engineers and farmers did not control with the precision they had anticipated. Irrigated Eden vividly portrays how human actions inadvertently helped to create a strange and sometimes baffling ecology.
Customer Reviews:
A Balanced Account on the Controversial Subject of desert Irrigation.......2006-01-31
People interested in the history of western agriculture should read this. I found it very interesting to compare the Southern Idaho irrigation projects he describes with what was happening along the mid-Columbia with private small irrigation projects during that period, through my own family, described in "Orchards of Eden" White Bluffs on the Columbia, 1907-1943" Also good to compare with the Autobiography of a woman who actually lived that life of irrigated wheat farming in Idaho during that period, "Sagebrush People" probably out of print now, too bad. Dr. Donald Worster's book "Rivers of Empire" is highly critical of what was done to the natural world in the effort to green the desert, and I tend to sympathize with what he says, while Fiege takes the postion that irrigation has learned to live in harmony with nature. But what happened to those small farmers in the meantime? The good life got swept away in corporate farming I am afraid.
Great reading for genisis of Idaho Snake River Water Use!.......1999-09-27
Irrigated Eden
In summary water along the Snake River in Idaho is unpredictable, not quantifiable, fickle and limited. Even in the 1920s when there were no uses competing with ariculture it had to be rationed. The surface water, ground water and aquifer commingle freely and as such should be jointly monitored and managed with "honest" diligence. When it comes to the water there is no such thing as partitioned individual water rights anywhere along the Sanke River in Idaho because we are all inextricably woven together in one tub and an action by one entity will affect everyone else in the tub. What one man passes another man drinks.Mark Fiege has done an excellent job of quantifying both the temporal and philosophical circumstances surrounding the acquisition and use of water for agriculture along the Snake River in Idaho up until about 1920. This book is a great place for one to begin to understand the genesis of water acquisition and husbandry for agriculture in Sountern Idaho. The first two thirds of the book and the notes are the best features of the book. The last third tends to drift away into a philosophical stretch without any real conclusions. Mark should now write a book that brings the use of water along the Sanke River in Southern Idaho up to the present time and weave together all of the contemporary competing uses for that water. Based on his research Mark should take the next step and make some recommendations for the future husbandry of our water. Mark has only done the first half of the job because the story is exponentially dynamic and just beginning. Finnish the story.
Books:
- The Emerging Christian Way: Thought, Stories, And Wisdom for a Faith of Transformation
- The First Betrayal
- The Gormenghast Novels
- The Heavens on Fire: The Great Leonid Meteor Storms
- The Ice People
- The Master Cleanser
- The Ravaging Tide: Strange Weather, Future Katrinas, and the Coming Death of America's Coastal Cities
- The Sea of Monsters (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 2)
- The Summoner: Book One in the Chronicles of the Necromancer
- The Transformers: Stormbringer (Transformers)
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Someday
- House of Rain: Tracking a Vanished Civilization Across the American Southwest
- Arts and Learning: An Integrated Approach to Teaching and Learning in Multicultural and Multilingual
- Carn
- Heart of a Nation: Writers and Photographers Inspired by the American Landscape
- History: Fiction or Science
- Hiding My Candy: The Autobiography of the Grand Empress of Savannah
- Cognitive Science, Literature, and the Arts: A Guide for Humanists
- Confucianism and Ecology: The Interrelation of Heaven, Earth, and Humans
- BOTTLE TO THROTTLE
The Human Tradition in California (Human Tradition in America)
Thrown Among Strangers: The Making of Mexican Culture in Frontier California
Fool's Paradise: A Carey McWilliams Reader (California Legacy Book) (California Legacy Book)
The Octopus: A Story of California
In Dubious Battle (Penguin Classics)
