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Guardians of the Valley
John Muir and the Friendship that Saved Yosemite
*"We see through this book the immense power of language...to change the minds of lawmakers and tourists alike." —The New York Times Book Review *"A poignant portrait of an era when mere words could change the world." —San Francisco Chronicle*
The dramatic and uplifting story of legendary outdoorsman and conservationist John Muir's journey to save Yosemite is "a rich, enjoyable excursion into a seminal period in environmental history" (The Wall Street Journal).
In June of 1889 in San Francisco, John Muir—iconic environmentalist, writer, and philosopher—meets face-to-face for the first time with his longtime editor Robert Underwood Johnson, an elegant and influential figure at The Century magazine. Before long, the pair, opposites in many ways, decide to venture to Yosemite Valley, the magnificent site where twenty years earlier, Muir experienced a personal and spiritual awakening that would set the course of the rest of his life.
Upon their arrival the men are confronted with a shocking vision, as predatory mining, tourism, and logging industries have plundered and defaced "the grandest of all the special temples of Nature." While Muir is devastated, Johnson, an arbiter of the era's pressing issues in the pages of the nation's most prestigious magazine, decides that he and Muir must fight back. The pact they form marks a watershed moment, leading to the creation of Yosemite National Park, and launching an environmental battle that captivates the nation and ushers in the beginning of the American environmental movement.
"Comprehensively researched and compellingly readable" (Booklist, starred review), Guardians of the Valley is a moving story of friendship, the written word, and the transformative power of nature. It is also a timely and powerful "origin story" as the towering environmental challenges we face today become increasingly urgent.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
March 21, 2023 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781797152196
- File size: 406824 KB
- Duration: 14:07:32
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Publisher's Weekly
January 30, 2023
Bestseller King (Skeletons on the Zahara) probes the transformative partnership between a writer and an editor in this sparkling history. Naturalist John Muir, “the father of our national parks, founder of the Sierra Club, and spiritual leader of the environmental movement,” began working with Century Magazine editor Robert Underwood Johnson in 1877, but they didn’t meet in person until 1889, when they traveled from San Francisco to “the holy temple” of Yosemite Valley, where Muir’s “enthrallment with nature... his belief in its worth, power, and sacredness” had “crystallize” 20 years earlier. But when Muir and Johnson visited, they saw a landscape devastated by damming, logging, grazing, mining, and tourism. Launching a preservation movement, the two “moved a mountain of greed and apathy” to have Yosemite declared a national park but lost the battle to save one of its most beautiful sections, Hetch Hetchy Valley, from being flooded to provide water to San Francisco. King vividly chronicles Muir’s evolution from “self-styled hobo” to forceful activist, goaded and nurtured by the “urbane” Johnson, and weaves in intriguing vignettes of Theodore Roosevelt, Poetry magazine founder Harriet Monroe, and others, as well as rhapsodic descriptions of the Sierra Nevada landscape. Fans of Ken Burns’s The National Parks documentary will cherish this inspired account of how an American treasure was saved. Photos. -
AudioFile Magazine
For fans of naturalist John Muir, this is a must-listen. Desz sets just the right tone as King recounts the friendship between Muir and journalist Robert Underwood Johnson. Plenty has been written about Muir, but this audiobook shares an important aspect of his writing and how it helped with his conservation efforts. Muir and Johnson collaborated and, at times, fought, to get their message of hope and conservation to people from all walks of life. One can hear in Desz's performance great respect for the scholarship of the author's work--and for the legacy of Muir. This audiobook will transport listeners to both the splendor of Yosemite and the wonders of the U.S. West. J.P.S. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
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Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
subjects
Languages
- English
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