In Praise of Nature

Island Press, 1990. 1st Edition. Hardcover. Near Fine/Near Fine. Inscribed on the half-title page: "For Wanita Kampmuller, A pleasure to meet you! Stephanie Mills, October 29, 1999. Grand Rapids, Michigan." Uncommon signed. And a useful book with an unusual format: It's a compendium of environment writing, especially contemporary, with mini-reviews of recent books by other nature writers and small samplings from those books. A little treasure trove and tour of the eco-writing scene, some of that reviewed writing literary, some of it more policy oriented. Sections are arranged according to the elements--earth, air, water, fire, spirit--and Mills provides a preface essay to each. A foreword by Tom Brokow and a preface by the publisher of Island Press. Edward Abbey, E.O. Wilson, Barry Lopez, George Perkins Marsh, Rachel Carson, Bill McKibben, and many more--that's a random sampling--they're all included and reviewed, sometimes by very recognizable writers such as Doug Peacock, Ernest Callenbach, David Brower, and David Rains Wallace. With a 35 page annotate bibliography of further reading in the field. A very near fine book in a very near fine jacket // Wood (+) River (=) Books specializes in ecology, natural history, nature writing, the environment, and environmental literature, with a special passion for association copies and notable inscriptions.