cover image Edge Effects: Notes from an Oregon Forest

Edge Effects: Notes from an Oregon Forest

Chris Anderson. University of Iowa Press, $9.95 (207pp) ISBN 978-0-87745-419-9

A sensitive observer who mixes nature writing with personal tales, freelance essayist Anderson offers episodic reflections on life on the edge of McDonald-Dunn Forest, a 12,000-acre research forest outside Corvallis, Ore. When residents responded to a planned clear-cutting, Anderson--who had moved to the forest for silence--found himself embroiled in theories and words. Speaking to a forestry class on behalf of local homeowners, he thoughtfully catalogues what makes a landscape pleasing and discusses the importance of learning to observe and read the forest slowly and regularly. Yet his affection for his surroundings fosters ambivalence: he becomes weary of the responsibility of having to learn about and master the forest. When he ventures afar, Anderson remains interesting: in the ``biosphere'' of the enormous Edmonton Mall, he finds everything the frigid city lacks. Reflecting on his forest walks, he acknowledges feeling neither Thoreauvian intensity nor deep Benedictine contemplation; rather, the repetition ``has the effect of meditation or liturgy.'' Portions of the essays were first published in magazines like Commonweal and the Georgia Review. Photos not seen by PW. (Nov.)