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The Anthropocene, a proposed new epoch marked by profound human impacts on the Earth, is the subject of author Denny's latest book. Known for making advanced science accessible to general readers, Denny (Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford) has a gift for concisely articulating complex issues, and for including arcane detail that enhances rather than obscures understanding. With his uniquely irreverent yet probing style, he is a tour de force here; his book is organized into 42 brief chapters with such titles as "The Population Bomb," "Fat Americans," and "Frack Attack." This reviewer has encountered few books that succeed so well in providing wide-ranging yet concentrated insights into issues of climate change and human behavior. Offering as an example a hypothetical debate between Paul Krugman and Niall Ferguson, Denny makes a compelling case that humans--including some of the most intelligent experts--tend to be irrational. The book concludes with practical suggestions for minimizing one's impact on the environment. This volume is a treasure, as both a compact, objective reference and a source of enjoyment.Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers.

Told in the broader context of Willamette Valley and Columbia River drainage, the environmental history of the Willamette River is full of parallels to struggles across the nation, both past and present. Hillegas-Elting (independent scholar) begins his account of the region with the arrival of European American settlers in the 1800s and the permanent changes they soon wrought on the watershed. Dams, industrial infrastructure, and wastes from paper mills, meat processing plants, and city sewage altered the once braided, meandering Willamette so severely that it functioned more as a canal than a natural river. This scholarly work is exceptionally readable, compelling, and highly relevant to any situation in which citizen groups and state and federal government bodies grapple with polluters. The author summarizes a valuable lesson from the Willamette in the introduction: "Both significant environmental changes and a core set of advocates were often required to force the broader American society to adjust its accustomed ways of living." The challenges of maintaining clean waterways are more complex than ever. This story demonstrates that persistent advocacy is essential, and the book--with its extensive bibliography, bibliographic essay, 50 illustrations, and detailed index--will inform policy makers and environmentalists alike.Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers.

General William Tecumseh is credited with saying, "It is only those who have neither fired a shot nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for blood, more vengeance, more desolation. War is hell." The idea of war as hell is not a new one; however, few have thoughtfully explored war's destructive capacities as they relate specifically to our environment. Smith, a former editor of Earth Island Journal, here presents a collection of provocative essays that bring substantial analysis and insight into the myriad ecological ills of war. Contributors to this volume include a range of activists and experts, such as Helen Caldicott, Michael Klare, Daniel Ellsberg, Jane Goodall, and many others. This collection brings together new and classic writings and touches on a broad array of topics, from refugees to drones to nuclear proliferation. Also included are a series of essays examining the devastating impacts of human conflict on various geographical regions around the world, including Syria, Vietnam, and Ukraine. A powerful collection that provides a much-needed perspective to the implications of warfare for the planet as a whole.Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers.

Veer Ecology is truly a unique book. Thirty scholars, mostly English professors, were asked to select a word related to environmentalism and then write a stimulating essay that considers some of the intricate contingencies and surprises likely to emerge and self-organize during the 21st century. The essays focus on the complex issues associated with ecological despoilment, global warming, and resource depletion. A random sample of the selected words includes vegetate, obsolesce, remember, compost, sediment, shade, drown, ape, whirl, hope. Each essay's one-word theme serves as a singular lens for probing the deep complexity of ecological change anticipated during this century. Many of the themes and ideas described by the essayists are unique, deeply enriching the reader's understanding of the future possibilities of the dynamic Earth. Many essays deserve multiple reads; their perspectives widen and deepen one another in the context of the essays surrounding it. A powerful book worth owning, reflecting on, and rereading time and again.Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers.