Ward (Canaries on the Rim
), a longtime environmental activist and successful grassroots organizer in the field, focuses on a refreshingly optimistic future for the earth. However, this hope-filled future is dependent on those with political authority adopting what the author believes are enlightened practices and theories in environmental science. With personal anecdotes and a conversational style, Ward provides the reader with a wealth of knowledge about contemporary environmental gurus and their teachings. He provides well-spun tales about critters like voles, coyotes, wolves, grasshoppers and oysters, and easily informs readers about such esoteric topics as deep ecology and the proposed rewilding of North America. He then delves into the causes and consequences of environmental catastrophes as diverse as the Aswan Dam, in Egypt; Lake Powell, Ariz.; and Chernobyl. However, Ward does not help to make his political case with his casual cheap-shot rhetoric against those he perceives as enemies of the environment. Additionally, he seems a fish out of water when he makes flip comments about geopolitics and the war on terrorism. These minor faults aside, this is an engaging and informative ecology book with a rare positive outlook. (May)
