That wild country : an epic journey through the past, present, and future of America's public lands /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

From prominent outdoorsman and nature writer Mark Kenyon comes an engrossing reflection on the past and future battles over our most revered landscapes--America's public lands.

Every American is a public-land owner, inheritor to the largest public-land trust in the world. These vast expanses provide a home to wildlife populations, a vital source of clean air and water, and a haven for recreation.

Since its inception, however, America's public land system has been embroiled in controversy--caught in the push and pull between the desire to develop the valuable resources the land holds or conserve them. Alarmed by rising tensions over the use of these lands, hunter, angler, and outdoor enthusiast Mark Kenyon set out to explore the spaces involved in this heated debate, and learn firsthand how they came to be and what their future might hold.

Part travelogue and part historical examination, That Wild Country invites readers on an intimate tour of the wondrous wild and public places that are a uniquely profound and endangered part of the American landscape.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

Wilderness blogger and podcaster Kenyon documents a historically and environmentally aware road trip in his inspiring debut. Reacting against a new conservative movement to transfer federally owned wilderness into private hands, Kenyon decided to "literally ground self in" the U.S.'s public land system, embarking on a grand tour in which he made time for, among other things, backpacking in Yellowstone, antler collecting in Missouri, and fishing in the Lewis and Clark National Forest. Kenyon's writing and traveling style are equally companionable; accompanied at various points by his wife, father, and friends, he evokes in his prose an appealing sense of shared experience. These more experiential sections alternate with historically centered ones that detail how the American wilderness first came under federal protection. Though the legislative details are rather dry, Kenyon successfully communicates his deep admiration for the visionaries responsible, among them Bob Marshall, John Muir, and Theodore Roosevelt. He also makes a strong argument for why two often politically opposed factions, hunters and environmentalists, should come together under the #KeepItPublic banner. Jumping between memoir and government history makes Kenyon's book somewhat sprawling, but it succeeds in making the political simultaneously personal and universal. Agent: Farley Chase, Chase Literary. (Dec.)

Kirkus Book Review

A nature writer and hunting and fishing podcaster offers an account of his travels in and the history of American public lands.American citizens, writes Kenyon, "are collective co-owners ofapproximately 640 million acres" of land designated for outdoor recreational activities like camping, hiking, hunting, and fishing. In his first book, the author explores a variety of federally protected natural areas, including Yellowstone National Park, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, and Arches National Park, while delving into the embattled history of America's wild places. Born into a family of Michigan hunters and anglers, Kenyon's passion for the outdoors developed after college. His research into American public lands transformed him into a political advocate who, over the course of 18 months, traveled across the United States to ground himself in the "national forests, monuments, wildlife refuges and wildernessthat hung in the balance." Camping trips, like one he took through the "shimmering plains and badland buttes" of North Dakota's Theodore Roosevelt National Park, made the author aware that such areas received federal protection only because champions like Roosevelt stood up to industrialists and developers who sought to use the land for profit. Laws, such as Roosevelt's Antiquities Act of 1906, granted presidents sole executive power to "designate lands as having historical landmarks, historic preservation structures and other objects of scientific interest.' " However, legislation has never guaranteed that natural areas would receive protected status or that lands with that status would remain safe from predation. Kenyon cites the case of the 1980s Sagebrush Rebellion, which sought to place control of federally protected Western lands into the hands of privatization-friendly state governments. The author also references Donald Trump's legal encroachments on the Antiquities Act and reductions of such wilderness areas as the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah. Thoughtfully observed throughout, Kenyon's book offers fond recollections of his experiences in the American outdoors while reminding readers of their obligation to protect their right to lands too often taken for granted.An intimate and informative journey. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.