Reviews (2)

This is a wonderful book
I met Pat Lisi and his wife at a photography class for the Women in the Outdoors program last fall in Appleton WI. He taught us patiently how to use our cameras, and I ended up having my photo of a Red-Tail Hawk published! His book is wonderful. We take it with us as we travel, and you wouldn't believe how many waterfalls you pass by as you travel, without knowing you are so very close to one. Without this book I wouldn't know where they are--so now we check the book, stop by the falls, and date the page in the book as we visit. Its a great book, a great gift for anyone, especially yourself! Thanks Pat for the book, and for the photography tips.

A nice walk through guide
The book proivdes a nice walk through of wisconsin waterfalls. The author also did a very nice job with the photos. ... Read more

Book Description

What could be safer than Grand Forks, North Dakota, settled on the vast, flat plain of the Red River? There'd be no danger unless the whole town went under water. But in April 1997 that is precisely what happened. Flood Stage and Rising tells the story of that month-long disaster from the point of view of one who lived through it-fighting the flood shoulder-to-shoulder with her neighbors, watching in horror as the water breaks the dikes, fleeing the city only to see, via newscasts, her town burst into flames at the height of the flood-and finally working to put her own and Grand Fork's life back together.

As she chronicles North Dakota's disastrous winter and spring-and the tortuous recovery process that continues to this day-Jane Varley gives us a shocking, moving picture of the reality behind the headline news that riveted the nation. A gifted poet and essayist, Varley has crafted a first-rate adventure narrative that is also a love story about a particular place and time, infused with her passion for the natural world, a curiosity about rivers and remote landscapes, and a need for meaning. Her story culminates a life of travels that prepared her-and prepares us-for what we see in North Dakota as the lake bed of the Red River Valley refills with water like a ghost of its ancient past. Jane Varley teaches writing at Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Beautifully Written Story
This book is an amazing story of the beauty and strength of nature.Though written as a narrative, the language is beautifully poetic.The author is a fantastic story teller, and shares a personal account of an incredible event.

Why Do We Live Here?
This is a question that Jane Varley probes in Flood Stage and Rising. It is thrilling and fascinating that she is writing about midwesterners, and more specifically, Grand Forksians, inhabitants of this Red River Valley---but Varley's explorations in this work move well beyond our area, begging everyone to look closely at their surroundings and experience a sense of place more fully.

Every other chapter in Flood Stage and Rising is about Varley's experiences during the 1997 Grand Forks flood. The other chapters reveal her connections to water, particularly rivers, over the course of her life. She was born during an April flood in Dubuque and in the chapter describing it says, "I was born from water into water."

As a newcomer to North Dakota, Varley maintains a compelling distance from her topic, offering us a view of ourselves that is rich in familiar phrases ("Forty below keeps the riff raff out"), accents ("Ya got cherself in a spot there, didn't cha?") and ways of life ("In Minnesota, kindness can be an urgent business"). Yet Varley reminds us of her transient status: "Was the flood helping me know this place better or preventing me from knowing it, spurring on the feeling that I should leave and find new territory?"

It's a question we ask ourselves: Why do we live here? Varley will not answer this question for you, or even really for herself. You will not want her to; you will read the book and ask questions of yourself, your home, your memories, your observations, and your thoughts. As I stated earlier, people from all parts of the country will relate to and enjoy this book, and we owe an extra thanks to Varley for reminding us where we've been, making us put aside the jokes about living in North Dakota long enough to truly appreciate our own stories. "The stories reveal who we are, full of words, ready to say what happened to us, as well as silent, turning back to the cold muck of a basement, reaching in and ordering a new kind of life."
... Read more

Book Description

The Rhine River is Europeís most important commercial waterway, channeling the flow of trade among Switzerland, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. In this innovative study, Mark Cioc focuses on the river from the moment when the Congress of Vienna established a multinational commission charged with making the river more efficient for purposes of trade and commerce in 1815. He examines the engineering and administrative decisions of the next century and a half that resulted in rapid industrial growth as well as profound environmental degradation, and highlights the partially successful restoration efforts undertaken from the 1970s to the present.

The Rhine is a classic example of a 'multipurpose' river -- used simultaneously for transportation, for industry and agriculture, for urban drinking and sanitation needs, for hydroelectric production, and for recreation. It thus invites comparison with similarly over-burdened rivers such as the Mississippi, Hudson, Colorado, and Columbia. The Rhineís environmental problems are, however, even greater than those of other rivers because it is so densely populated (50 million people live along its borders), so highly industrialized (10% of global chemical production), and so short (775 miles in length).

Two centuries of nonstop hydraulic tinkering have resulted in a Rhine with a sleek and slender profile. In their quest for a perfect canal-like river, engineers have modified it more than any other large river in the world. As a consequence, between 1815 and 1975, the river lost most of its natural floodplain, riverside vegetation, migratory fish, and biodiversity. Recent efforts to restore that biodiversity, though heartening, can have only limited success because so many of the structural changes to the river are irreversible.

The Rhine: An Eco-Biography, 1815-2000 makes clear just how central the river has been to all aspects of European political, economic, and environmental life for the past two hundred years.

"The Rhine: An Eco-Biography is the first true environmental history of a major European river. The story Mark Cioc tells in these pages is both fascinating and cautionary. What happened to the Rhine during the 19th and 20th centuries was unquestionably one of the success stories of modern history, a triumphant example of the human benefits that can flow from harnessing natureís power to benefit humanity. But an immense price was paid for those benefits, so much so that by the closing decades of the 20th century, enormous efforts were being expended to recover some of the creatures, ecosystems, and natural processes that had once been sacrificed to the dream of progress." -- from the Foreword by William Cronon ... Read more

Book Description

How to Save a River presents in a concise and readable format the wisdom gained from years of river protection campaigns across the United States. The book begins by defining general principles of action, including getting organized, planning a campaign, building public support, and putting a plan into action. It provides detailed explanations of how to:

• form an organization and raise money
• develop coalitions with other groups
• plan a campaign and build public support
• cultivate the media and other powerful allies
• develop credible alternatives to damaging projects

Reviews (1)

Crescent Rivers
This book shows Florida at its natural best, with an insider's look at some of the state's most beautiful waterways. As a Florida native, I found the book especially enjoyable - as it shows images of things that are disappearing all too fast. Even those who have never seen sights such as those Bertolaet reveals will enjoy the beauty of his photographs. The images draw the viewer into each scene, and it's easy to imagine the call of birds, whisper of the wind through branches or the murmur of water moving swiftly past. The writing is entertaining and easy to read, while also offering food for thought about the natural world and man's relationship to it. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Second Edition
The book is a good history of the St. Croix River that is now the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway. The book was originally written in 1964/5 and this version is only updated in the introduction so the history ends before Congress passed the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
Dunn does give a thorough history of the river prior to 1965. The book is a good read especially if you are from the Minnesota Wisconsin area. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Puts the Kentucky into Perspective
Mr. Ellis does a good job of putting the Kentucky River into both its historical and contemporary perspectives. His research is outstanding, and he provides in-depth coverage of the geographic, historic, economic, cultural and social significance of the river.

His analysis of the contemporary problems the river faces is especially thought provoking.

Anyone who has grown up or lived on the banks of the Kentucky will find it highly interesting and entertaining.

Good research but bad writing.
This book is a good source of history about the Kentucky River but is verydifficult to read.The writing is awful, as Mr Ellis often changes topicsin the middle of a paragraph and punctuates erratically.This book isheavy on recollections of old-timers on the river, but light on photos,maps, and illustrations that would help to make the book a lotclearer.

Only buy this book if you have a deep interest in the history ofKentucky or America's rivers.If you don't have a driving interest in oneof those subjects this book will put you to sleep. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

Dated Classic still delivers the goods
This lucid, admirably written, and fully illustrated study by a noted French scholar and Egyptologist surveys the rise and decline of Egyptian culture through thirty centuries. Divided into three sections, the 1927 classic presents the history of Egypt in an absolutely new light, focusing in Part I on the country itself?early social organization, dynasties and divine kingdoms, nomes (or provinces) of the delta, and more. Part II covers kinship and society, including the protohistoric monarchy, the earliest royal institutions, the feudal period and social revolutions, the rule of just laws, and other topics.
Part III is devoted to a vigorous summary of intellectual life, including religion, art, and science, with detailed discussions of the growing complexity of Egyptian religion and the position of such gods as Ra and Osiris in the Egyptian pantheon; the practice of magic; morality and personal piety; the design and construction of temples and tombs; geometry and mathematics; medicine; astronomy; literature; and much else.
Enlivened with picturesque details and quotations that take readers into the heart of a glorious civilization, this profusely illustrated, comprehensive, and perceptive view of ancient Egypt remains "an excellent study, thorough, careful, intelligent, and above all, readable."?New Republic. It will appeal to general readers as well as scholars. ... Read more

Book Description

On an unforgettable journey of discovery, Facing the Congo transports readers into the lush jungles and crocodile-infested waters of sub-Saharan Africa.Climbing the river on a barge teeming with merchants, deckhands, prostitutes, mothers, spiritual followers, fishermen, and children, Tayler participates in the lively banter of this floating marketplace, and at night drapes mosquito netting over his cramped sleeping space, relishing a few hours of solitude between days wrought with adversity and suspicion.

Yet, the climate of Tayler's trip shifts drastically when he steps off the boat packed with jeering travelers, and launches his quest to confront and vanquish this legendary waterway by descending its longest navigational stretch in a hand-carved pirogue.

"Desi [my guide] and I looked at each other, then turned to the river.Eleven hundred miles to Kinshasa...my heart was thumping and sweat stung my eyes.Raising his hands, Desi faced the blackness and began muttering a prayer, an invocation in Lingala punctuated with the French for salvation, mercy, the grace of God... We stood for a moment, as if to let the words take effect.Then we grabbed our oars and climbed aboard--I at the bow and Desi astern--and pushed off."

At times lost in the fog-covered backwaters, at others faced by hostile tribes whose ancestors were murdered by those with white skin, Tayler wrestles with anxiety as he prepares for the dangers that lie with each turn in the river.Anyone possessing even a hint of wanderlust will be swept along by the whirling currents of this astonishing tale. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

A sad book
This is perhaps the best travel log I've ever read. It makes those in the western world appreciate more what they have compared to the desolation that wreaks havoc in this area of the world (in particular).

It is the journey of an American living in Moscow who wants to retrace Henry Stanley's trek down the Congo River in modern day Zaïre. It chronicles his planning; the trip to Brazzaville, Congo; the ferry to Kinsasha, Zaïre; the barge up to Kisangani; and the trek back town towards Kinsasha. It chronicles the folks he met (those who helped and those who hurt), personal fears and human tragedy.

There are even a few incidents of humor interjected (for those who have read the book: When Desi uses the toothpaste, the use of the shotgun, the TV show playing at the Kinsasha diner, among others).

It is, as Bill Bryson describes it, an "immensely gripping tale." I never found myself bored with it and was able to tackle its reading quite quickly (for me). I was actually near tears right at the end because I had become so involved with the book and its characters and I almost felt as if the tragedy was my own.

I highly recommend this book to anyone with any interest in either Zaïre (or Dem. Rep. Congo as it is today), Africa, or just likes to read a well written and intensely interesting novel.

The Greatest Gift
Tayler's ability to capture the full flavor of Africa while giving the reader room to make an assesment of this often violent culture attests to his flare and careful attention to the human experience. Tayler never forgets that he is traveling this river looking at its inhabitants with Western lenses. For the reader looking for adventure, this book is full-flavored. For a fellow and perhaps struggling writer, Tayler's words speak a priceless and empathetic language. But what makes the book most successful is that it speaks to anyone who has lived, loved, and searched for that missing piece, realizing it can always be found in the journey. It is travel writing at its best, full of observations and rhetorical questions presented to the reader as writing's greatest gift.

Existential Journey into the Heart of Darkness
A great read for anyone interested in adventure travel or Central Africa. Tayler chronicles his travels along the 1,100 plus mile Congo river in Zaire, and his personal journey to find meaning in his existence.

Demonstrating laudatory courage, Tayler navigates the dangers of the Congo (e.g., weather, disease, beasts, banditry, corruption, etc.), first up-river as passenger on a barge, and then down-river along with two Zairean companions in his pirogue (a small wooden canoe) - a trip no mondele (i.e., white man) may have completed since the explorer Stanley (many of the several who have tried did not survive). The result is a compelling tale that provides a glimpse into Tayler's inner soul and the people of Central Africa, while also indirectly shedding light on political, economic and social issues regarding the developed and undeveloped world.

An eminently enjoyable read that you are not likely to be able to put down, and one which may cause you to contemplate planning your own existential journey.

Recommended reading for the armchair traveler
Part travelogue, part memoir, Jeffrey Tayler's Facing The Congo takes the reader on a memorable and fascinating journey into sub-Saharan Africa's crocodile waters and lush jungles, lush jungles, and a spectacular variety of merchants, deckhands, prostitutes, mothers, spiritual followers, fishermen, children, and many other assorted charecters. From lively marketplace banter to cramped, mosquito infested sleeping spaces, Facing The Congo is the story of Tayler's trip up and down the legendary Congo River complete with fog covered backwaters, hostile tribes, and true-life high adventure. Facing The Congo is thoroughly satisfying, enthusiastically recommended reading for the armchair traveler.

Facing Central Africa through TAYLER'S eyes
Jeffrey Taylor's book Facing the Congo gives an insight into the former-Zaire, as well as a brief view of Brazzaville in the Republic of Congo. His book contributes immensely to an outsider's inside view of Zaire and how a leader by the name of Mobutu Sese Seko, along with western support, de-moralized and contributed to the present state-of-affairs in the newly renamed DRC. Jeffrey Tayler's cautious and realistic approach to the region does justice to the task that was at hand. Neither does Tayler make stereotypical assumptions, nor does he grossly inflate his story, he tells the situation as it was, and is.

For people who are interested in the Central Africa region, this book is highly recommended as a nice travelogue written by a mondele who sought to travel the River Congo and document his experiences. As someone who has traveled throughout this region, I can personally say that I have had similar experiences as Jeffrey Tayler has had.

For those who consider themselves 'travelogue-junkies,' this book will be a nice addition to your collection(s)and imagination(s). This book will give you plenty of sights, smells, and images to think about as you read the book, and to further think about after you put it down.

Thanks Mr. Tayler for putting your experience on paper! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Reflecting the Times
At 60 years old, Geraldine Watson decided to make the eighty mile journey down the Neches River in the pineywoods of East Texas that she had wanted to take all her life. As a naturalist and Big Thicket activist, she had visited parts of the river many times over the years. In three separate segments, she floats down the river from Town Bluff to just north of Beaumont. On the way, the reader is treated to actual accounts of the trip along with memories and histories of the river, the land, and its people. There are beautiful memories, such as finding of a rare colony of yellow ladies slipper orchids in a hidden glen, celebrating with the river people; sad memories, such as the raping of the forests, the loss of her faithful dog, the hard times of the people inhabiting the river bottoms; and funny memories, such as hitching a ride off an island on a tugboat.

An absorbing memoir of past childhood
Deftly written by Geraldine Ellis Watson (a plant ecologist and former ranger for the National Park Service), Reflections On The Neches is an absorbing memoir of a past childhood as well as a commentary upon the natural and social history of the Neches (one of the last "wild" rivers in Texas, just now being subjected to dams) region of the Big Thicket country. A moving and insightful reflection of the ecology and the natural beauty of the land itself, Reflections On The Neches is informed and informative reading, and highly recommended to students of Natural History in general, and the Neches River Valley country in particular. ... Read more

Book Description

The Yukon River is one of the most beautiful rivers in North America, especially the 650-mile portion from the headwater lakes in British Columbia down to Dawson City. This is also an historic section of the river because of the Klondike gold rush of 1897-99 and the 50-year steamboat era that followed. Archie Satterfield has traveled this stretch of wild river several times and has written extensively about the river and the gold rush in other books, particularly Chilkoot Pass, and numerous magazine articles. Illustrated with historic and modern photos, plus sketch maps to guide travelers along this beautiful and historic waterway. ... Read more

Book Description

Fly fishing is a tranquil and seductive sport, and John Juracek has captured moments that most evoke the subtle beauty of an angler in pursuit of trout and solitude.

Juracek immerses us in the wilds of the lakes and rivers of the Yellowstone Park-the country's most famous fishing area where anglers come to connect with their passion for the mystery and aliveness of trout and the outdoors.

The fly-fishers' fascination with trout is timeless. For some it's the challenge of following instincts and hunches, exercising patience, and honing techniques. For others the love of angling is the carefree and harmonious convening with Mother Nature.

Yellowstone's striking photography is a visual experience where anglers encounter big azure skies in mountain settings and dramatic pink sunrises on crisp autumn mornings-places where passion for a sport and beauty of the outdoors are an art form. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A superb giftbook for fly-fishers who treasure memories
Yellowstone: Photographs Of A Fly-Fishing Landscape by John Juracek is a simply awe-inspiring selection of beautiful, full-color photographs of a fisherman enjoying great and memorable fly-fishing locales in the Yellowstone National Park during day, sunset, night, and throughout all the seasons of the year. Yellowstone is entirely devoted to the photographs; the only text sections are a brief introduction, and simple captions naming the locale of each photograph - from Firehole River to Henry's Fork, Idaho. A superb giftbook for fly-fishers who treasure memories of wilderness beauty, Yellowstone is a thoroughly impressive volume of the photographer's art and could well serve as an example for similar projects by other aspiring nature photographers to emulate. ... Read more

Book Description

Water law, water politics, and especially water shenanigans are at the center of this book about New Mexico and Texas dividing the Pecos River. On one level the story is about a twenty-year court case, Texas v. New Mexico, a monstrous law suit between two states sharing a common water source, a state boundary, and a long history of mutual enmity. On another level, this story is as big and far-reaching as the high plains drained by the Pecos: it is part memoir, part biography, and part environmental history, part the history of hydrology, and part a contribution to the annals of litigation in the great tradition of Anthony Lewis and Jonathan Harr.

While High and Dry focuses on clashes of principles and personalities, especially in the courtroom, it remains very much a story about a river and its world in an arid region. There are irrigators here, including the leading “old families” of southeastern New Mexico, and there is nature here, including “the vampires of the West,” the rapacious salt cedars relentlessly sucking up the precious Pecos stream flow. But beneath them all is the author, inviting readers to see how tiny gardens grown for the soul are as crucial to the overall story as the adjudication of water rights. Hall gives a masterful summary of the legal and scientific parts of the story, but he excels in letting us feel and care about water in the same manner as do the people who use it to grow crops. “One of the best books anywhere on the heart and soul of western water, High and Dry will leave you awed and flabbergasted by the intricacy, chicanery, mystery, and good old nonstop adventure of interstate water disputes. It is a joy to read, rich in humor and quirky personalities.”—John Nichols

“A major contribution to western water law and history in the tradition of Donald Worster. High and Dry is essential reading.”—Dan Tarlock, Chicago-Kent College of Law ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Absorbing (pun intended). Book is both excellent and timely
In the Southwest, water rights are a war zone; the film "Chinatown" (with Jack Nicholson), of course, showed that the fight could even be the background for fictional excitement. This work of legal and social history is hardly a whodunit, yet the real-life battle it surveys possesses a vivid life nevertheless, in the author's highly readable prose. Hall is a law professor, so it's not surprising that he's done plenty of homework, and has mastered the facts of the story he tells. But he also writes with a humorous touch--appropriately dry (what else?)--and knows how to keep things personal too; he weaves his own experiences (as lawyer, writer, and also gardener and weekend farmer) into the story. As I write (spring, 2002), water shortages may be turning from a regional into a national phenomenon. Even if that danger abates soon, though, we can't take any environmental issues for granted any more, so a book like this has cautionary value too. Water: Gotta have it. Maybe optimists can happily relax if a glass is half-full, but we all need to apply higher standards of worry, when it's a matter of reservoirs. And the book's a wonderful read, too. ... Read more

Book Description

Deforestation is occurring at an alarming rate in many parts of theworld, causing destruction of natural habitat and fragmentation of what remains.Nowhere is this problem more pressing than in the Amazon rainforest, which is rapidlyvanishing in the face of enormous pressure from humans to exploit it. This book presentsthe results of the longest-running and most comprehensive study of forest fragmentationever undertaken, the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP) incentral Amazonia, the only experimental study of tropical forest fragmentation in whichbaseline data are available before isolation from continuous forest took place.

A joint project of Brazil's National Institute for Research in Amazonia and the U.S.Smithsonian Institution, the BDFFP has investigated the many effects that habitatfragmentation has on plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates. The book provides anoverview of the BDFFP, reports on its case studies, looks at forest ecology and treegenetics, and considers what issues are involved in establishing ... Read more

Book Description

A close look at the history of Detroit's distinguished waterway that also documents the Detroit River's ecosystem problems and explains how it can be further protected and remain one of the world's great rivers. ... Read more

Book Description

The Nile is the longest river in the world. In its route from the Lake Plateau of East Africa to the Mediterranean, the Nile flows for more than four thousand miles through nine countries: Tanzania, Kenya, Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Uganda, the Sudan, and Egypt. The river begins in volcanoes and mountains with glacial snows and ends in arid deserts.

Throughout history, the banks of the Nile have been home to many peoples, from Bantu cultivators, Nilotic herdsmen, and Ethiopians in their highlands to the Sudanese, Nubians, and Egyptians on the plains below. No other river in the world has embraced such human diversity. But the huge and varied populations that have thrived on the waters of the Nile have also exerted extraordinary pressures on the river and its environment. From the early canals dug by the pharaohs to the building of the Aswan High Dam in 1971, civilizations have struggled to tame the Nile and control its resources. In The Nile, Robert Collins charts this dynamic interplay between man and nature in chronicling the past, present, and future of this great river. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Surveys the river's importance to local lives & world events
This scholarly and thoroughly impressive history of the Nile River provides a fine blend of geography and history as it surveys the river's importance to local lives and world events. From its various ecological niches and environments to the special history of its evolution and importance to mankind, The Nile is filled from cover to cover with a wealth of lively and articulate description.

great read
By Robert I. Rotberg

The life-giving Nile of lower Egypt trickles first from two springs in Burundi and Rwanda and then meanders 4,238 miles as the White Nile through great equatorial lakes; loses itself in tangled and difficult swamps; tortuously emerges to run freely toward its confluence with the much more powerful, if shorter, Blue Nile from Ethiopia; and then flows over cataracts and dams through the great desert to the Mediterranean Sea.

Over five millenniums, the nutrient- and silt-laden Nile floodwaters enabled agriculture and civilization to flourish all along its lower reaches. When the annual summer flood failed, however, the northern Sudan and all of classical and modern Egypt suffered hideously.

Collins links the dark ages of dynastic Egypt and the successes of invading outsiders to those sometimes prolonged periods when the Nile withheld its renewing gift. In turn, those dry spells reflected shifts in the rainfall patterns of equatorial Africa and highland Ethiopia, not - as the Egyptians always feared - to the manipulative scheming of Ethiopian monarchs or African chieftains.

There were many efforts to measure the flows of the Nile, and then to harness it effectively. Taming the Nile, the quixotic goal of administrators from early times, led to the first small dams, and in the early 20th century to dams in the Sudan. President Gamal Abdel Nasser's Aswan High Dam of 1970, with its 300-mile lake and its ancillary dam at Roseires in the Sudan, were together intended to regulate the river forever, smoothing out the years of high and low water. But the mighty Nile refused to capitulate, and the impoundment of its waters has led to great silting and weakening of the dams, the impoverishment of Egyptian agriculture, unexpected disease, and unanticipated economic and social consternation.

Collins's seamless biography captures the soul of a river that is both a result of and a continuing influence upon Africa's geology, climate, history, peoples, economy, and politics. Collins roams over the 2 million-square-mile basin of the Nile - the smaller rivers, the large and tiny lakes, and the glacier-capped mountain ranges - and writes movingly of the glory and challenges faced by the immense cascade of water as it makes its way over myriad waterfalls and past pumping stations, villages, towns, and cities to its ultimate destination. He also captures the trials and triumphs of the Nile's sometimes human- assisted passage through the Sudd - a vast eddying swamp-like mass of lagoons and channels that long defied explorers and entrepreneurs as they attempted to follow the White Nile south into equatorial regions.

Counterintuitively, more of the merged waters of the Nile come from the Blue branch, not the much longer and more tortuous White system. The Blue starts higher than the White, at 9,000 feet, and then rushes into shallow Lake Tana. From shores ringed by Coptic Christian monasteries, the Blue carves a great arc through the lava dikes and sandstone plateaus of western Ethiopia, strengthened by three significant and many minor tributaries until it leaves the highlands and crosses into the Sudan as a source of regular refreshment.

As in any great biography, there are diversions off the main channel. Collins swoops readers into the Baro Salient, that riverine mapmaking mistake that thrusts Ethiopia into the southern Sudan, where commerce coursed clandestinely across borders. He takes us on a fascinating search for 15-foot canaries - not in John Williams' standard "Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa" - high up in the Mountains of the Moon (the Ruwenzori Range). And he supplies unexpected facts. For instance, as mighty as the Nile may be, its volume of fresh water delivered to the Mediterranean is only 2 percent of the total of the Amazon River and 15 percent of that of the Mississippi River. For much of its 160 million-year history, the Nile emptied into the Indian Ocean; only in comparatively recent geological times has it flowed north.

This is an easy book to read and to like. Yet there are occasional anachronisms, where sketches of people or places forsake the findings of modern linguistic and ethnological scholarship, and repetition of pet phrases or factoids. But the book's big flaw is the fault of the publisher: The quality and clarity of the maps and photographs are inadequate for a study as important as this panoramic biography of a pulsing river.

' Robert I. Rotberg directs Harvard's Program on Intrastate Conflict and is president of the World Peace Foundation.

from the January 09, 2003 edition - ...

Great maps and a riveting narrative
There are a lot of great books on the Nile; Emil Ludwig's classic and Alan Whitehead's come to mind. This is another, updated version, that fills in a lot of the blanks left by the earlier books. It is well written and up-to-date. The emphasis is on politics and history but the author also appreciates the physical wonder that is the Nile. The author spends a lot of time talking about this place and that place, but the book is full of excellent maps to guide the geographically perplexed. It is a good read for the adventurous as well as those interested in the challenges facing modern Africa. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is like Stanley Crawford’s floor. The floor began more than thirty years ago when Crawford moved his family to New Mexico after selling movie rights to his first novel. The history of their home-made house is written in the hand-plastered floor, patched and sealed over the years. At first a reminder of how little he and his wife knew about working with mud, the floor has become beautiful in the years since 1971. It embodies their lives, the ways things have changed and the ways things have stayed the same. "A mud floor is perfectly sustainable, being infinitely repairable and finally recyclable."

"Reflections in Mud," Crawford’s essay about the floor, is one of the many pieces collected in this book about his life in northern New Mexico. The novelist who didn’t know how to lay a mud floor is now a seasoned farmer, irrigator, and northern New Mexico villager, and the essays on these subjects that he has been writing since the 1980s continue the work he began in Mayordomo and A Garlic Testament as an articulator of values that are out of synch and out of scale with the suburban lives of most Americans in the twenty-first century. Whether he is writing about the river whose water irrigates his land, the plants and animals with which he lives, or the continuing struggle he and his neighbors must engage in if their small farms and farmers markets are to survive, Crawford’s thoughtful, witty essays are the kinds of summing up that his fans have been cutting out of periodicals for years. Now that they are in book form we can all throw away the clippings, reread the essays, and give the book to friends who have yet to discover the pleasure of reading Stanley Crawford. ... Read more

Book Description

The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons, recently ranked number four on Adventure magazine’s list of top 100 classics, is legendary pioneer John Wesley Powell’s first-person account of his crew’s unprecedented odyssey along the Green and Colorado Rivers and through the Grand Canyon. A bold foray into the heart of the American West’s final frontier, the expedition was achieved without benefit of modern river-running equipment, supplies, or a firm sense of the region’s perilous topography and the attitudes of the native inhabitants towards whites.

What started as a scientific exploration of uncharted territory quickly turned into a harrowing quest for sustenance and survival. Shaped from Powell’s original field writings, this book is as exciting today as it was when first published in 1874. This handsome new edition from National Geographic Adventure Classics also features an exclusive introduction by adventure historian Anthony Brandt that puts into perspective Powell’s achievement and traces its great legacy across United States history.

Reviews (6)

An epic narrative by an epochal figure
John Wesley Powell, for better or worse, made the American West what it is today. He was the primary founder of the Bureau of Reclamation, the agency that has vandalized the West, and of the United States Geological Service. He also completed the last great feat of exploration on American soil when he and his cohorts undertook the voyage that is the main subject of this book. That the book combines two voyages into one epic adventure is not widely known, but it does not detract from the narrative to any meaningful extent.

Powell's narrative of the so-called Grand Canyon voyage is simply, yet powerfully, written, even carrying touches of the poetic. It is easy to sense his feelings of awe and wonder, particularly in exploring the canyons themselves. Powell never put his main function, scientific discovery, out of mind until the race through the Grand Canyon became one against the calendar as well as the power of the river. Even then, his writing evidences a sense of charity and concern toward his men.

Powell's narrative evokes many vivid memories of the beauty and timelessness of the country he explored, particularly his writings on the now-vanished Glen Canyon. It seems a pity, somehow, that much of what he saw is buried under stagnant, polluted reservoirs, the worst of which ironically carries his name. Would this brilliant, feeling man approve? I do not think so.

The growing recognition of the role native Americans have played in our country's history and development would find a more sympathetic vein with Powell, and his studies of ethnography and acclimatation to the arid habitat by native Americans may prove a more lasting memoir. These parts of the book should be read with equal care.

As to the canyons themselves, Powell would be the first to tell you that the artificial plug of stone at Page, Arizona, is only temporary, and that, as with the volcanic debris at Lava Falls, the river will soon have its way again.

Exploration of the Last Unmapped Part of Continental U.S.
On May 24, 1869, Major John W. Powell, a one-armed veteran of the Civil War, along with nine others (geologists, geographers, scouts and adventurers), set out from Green River, Wyoming to explore the last great unmapped and unknown portion of the continental U.S. No man had ever descended the Colorado river as it cut its way through 1,000 miles of incredibly rugged badlands. However, Powell and his band of men completed a remarkable journey of exploration through this country.

A passage from Powell's narrative of the expedition, after they had been on the river nearly two months, conveys very well a perspective of the challenge Powell and his men faced, the courage they demonstrated and Powell's matter of fact, but powerful writing style.

"We are now ready to start on our way down the Great Unknown. Our boats, tied to a common stake, chafe each other as they are tossed by the fretful river. They ride high and buoyant, for their loads are lighter than we could desire. We have but a month's rations remaining. The flour has been resifted through the mosquito-net sieve; the spoiled bacon has been dried and the worst of it boiled; the few pounds of dried apples have been spread in the sun and reshrunken to their normal bulk. The sugar has all melted and gone on its way down the river. But we have a large sack of coffee. The lightening of the boats has this advantage--they will ride the waves better; and we shall have but little to carry when we make a portage. We are three quarters of a mile in the depths of the earth and the great river shrinks into insignificance as it dashes its angry waves against the walls and cliffs that rise to the world above. The waves are but puny ripples. We are but pigmies, running up and down among the sands or lost among the boulders. We have an unknown distance yet to run, an unknown river to explore. What falls there are, we know not. What rocks beset the channel, we know not. What walls rise over the river, we know not. Ah, well! We may conjecture many things. The men talk as cheerfully as ever. To me, the cheer is somber and the jests ghastly."

This book is a classic tale of exploration and discovery!

Best book ever
makes you feel like you are there, check out the song mr. powell by the ozark mountain daredevils.

Bears comparison with Lewis and Clark
Even if you are illiterate, the drawings in this book are frequently incredible. While true, that the drawings don't always fit with the adjacent text, this will neither lessen the impact of the journal nor irritate the enjoyment of its descriptions. Like Lewis and Clark, Powell suffered great hardships on the way, going so far along known courses, and then emerging into the great unknown. His account of his last ten critical days on the Colorado River is compelling, his descriptions of the Grand Canyon and other canyons are frequently better than the illustrious drawings, and his geographic and geologic explanations of the basin's creation help shape a broader view of one of America's most visited places.

I highly recommend this as a reference book, a history book of the area, an adventure story, and an art portfolio.

This is a basic reference, not an intro to the Colorado Rive
This is a review of a 1961 paperback edition that I purchased in Madison, WI at a used book shop for five dollars in December of 1998. The book is extremely well illustrated, although, not always of pertinent figures. The illustrations are unorganized and often leave you wondering how a perticular image relates to the text. This book is not a wildly descriptive representation of Powells struggles on his journey, but rather a dry direct account from his scientific journal. If you are looking for a good easy descriptive read to aquaint you with the Colorado River I would suggest you look into some of the works published by Wallace Stegner. For a more experience individual, this book is an excellent reference regarding the historical account of how the physiographic features of the area recieved their names and what the landscape looked like prior to dams, lakes, National Park roads, the removal of the Native Americans. Its also an account of people exploring before the glorification of the"wilderness" leading to east-coast city slickers (like myself) persuing expditions to places the dont belong. Let us all throw away our synthetic North Face fleece (100% Crude Oil) and read deeply about a region before we go. If we go at all and trod on someones stolen lands (i.e. Navajo, Ute,...). ... Read more

Reviews (2)

What about the head waters?
I purchased this river guide for the purposes of canoeing on the Susquehanna in northern PA. My mistake; it does not cover the river north of Wilkes-Barre.

For the sections of the Susquehanna covered by the book, it does a nice job. One exception is that it make no mention of where the portages are around the dams.

The Susquehanna River Guide
A good resource for tackling the Susquehanna. Concise, with fine maps showing access points (with a handy index to the access points in the back). Helpful discussions of the fish available, fishing techniques, plus thoughts on tackling the river by foot or in a boat. Also, has a welcome dose of conservation thoughts tossed in. ... Read more

Book Description

Conventional engineering solutions to problems of flooding and erosion are extremely destructive to natural environments. Restoring Streams in Cities presents viable alternatives to traditional practices that can be used both to repair existing ecological damage and to prevent such damage from happening.

Ann L. Riley describes an interdisciplinary approach to stream management that does not attempt to "control" streams, but rather considers the stream as a feature in the urban environment. She presents a logical sequence of land-use planning, site design, and watershed restoration measures along with stream channel modifications and floodproofing strategies that can be used in place of destructive and expensive public works projects. She features examples of effective and environmentally sensitive bank stabilization and flood damage reduction projects, with information on both the planning processes and end results. Chapters provide:

• background needed to make intelligent choices, ask necessary questions, and hire the right professional help
• history of urban stream management and restoration
• information on federal programs, technical assistance and funding opportunities
• in-depth guidance on implementing projects: collecting watershed and stream channel data, installing revegetation projects, protecting buildings from overbank stream flows

Profusely illustrated and including more than 100 photos, Restoring Streams in Cities includes detailed information on all relevant components of stream restoration projects, from historical background to hands-on techniques. It represents the first comprehensive volume aimed at helping those involved with stream management in their community, and describes a wealth of options for the treatment of urban streams that will be useful to concerned citizens and professional engineers alike. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An excellent and comprehesive guide
This unique book is a comprehensive and detailed guide to how to go about restoring streams that have been degraded by channelization, excessive erosion or sedimentation, and undergrounding into storm drains. It covers everything from how to form Friends groups and develop public support through engineering and design choices. As an educated citizen without specialized training in engineering, I found it highly readable; the concepts are presented thoroughly but without excessive jargon. The author is a cofounder of the Urban Creeks Council of California and the Coalition to Rescue Urban Waters.

Planning and policy related to urban stream restoration
This book does an adequate job of generally presenting information in non-technical fashion for planners, policy makers, and citizens as related to stream restoration in cities. It is simplistic and fairly straight-forward reading for the layman interested in this topic.

On page 128, there is a diagram showing "factors influencing stream erosion and sedimentation" which appears to be attributed to Mr. E W Lane in an American Society of Civil Engineers professional journal dated 1955. However, a closer inspection of this particular journal article by interested readers should reveal to them that the figure shown in Riley's book in reality doesn't actually appear in the journal itself; although the diagram's concepts themselves are given in the journal article. So the question remains, WHO ACTUALLY DREW THE DIAGRAM in Riley's book and WHY WEREN'T THEY PROPERLY RECOGNIZED IN IT?

And HOW MANY OTHER MIS-LEADING OVERSIGHTS are possibly contained in the book?

From a hydraulic and hydrologic technical and design stand-point, this book appears weak and I feel that citation problems like I previously mentioned are inexcusable and not acceptable for a published book.

Thus my average rating of it. ... Read more