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The great degeneration: how institutions decay and economies die
By Niall Ferguson. 2013
An examination of institutional dysfunction in the Western world argues that such values as a free market and representative government…
are being compromised while future generations are inheriting unmanageable levels of debt. 2013.The good life: Helen and Scott Nearing's sixty years of self-sufficient living
By Scott Nearing, Helen Nearing. 1989
Describes how in 1932 a married couple left New York City for the backwoods of Vermont in search of a…
life of "simplicity, serenity, utility, and harmony." This account of their pioneering venture tells how they built a house, worked a self-sufficient farm, and lived a satisfying life in nature. c1989. Uniform title: Living the good lifeThe golden spruce: A True Story Of Myth, Madness And Greed
By John Vaillant. 2005
In 1997, when a shattered kayak and camping gear are found on an Alaskan island north of the Canadian border,…
they reignite a mystery surrounding a shocking act of protest. The author braids together the strands of this mystery and brings to life the historical collision of Europeans and the Haida and the harrowing world of logging. Canada Reads 2012. Winner of the 2005 Governor General's Award for Non-fiction. Bestseller. 2005.The great fire
By Jim Murphy. 1995
An account of the conflagration that levelled much of Chicago in 1871. Chronicles events from the fire's outbreak and rapid…
spread to its extinguishment by rain, as reported by survivors and in documents of the period. Examines the origins, circumstances, and official failures that contributed to the disaster. Grades 5-8. A 1996 Newbery Honor Book. c1995.Cahill continues his study of civilizations, begun in "How the Irish Saved Civilization" (DC15036), with an extended look at the…
Torah. He shows how events therein, especially the Jews' belief in one God and their ability to look at reality in a whole new way, influenced civilization. Some strong language. Bestseller. 1998.The frackers: the outrageous inside story of the new billionaire wildcatters
By Gregory Zuckerman. 2014
In five years, the United States has seen a historic burst of oil and natural gas production, easing our insatiable…
hunger for energy. A new drilling process called fracking has made us the world's fastest growing energy power, on track to pass Saudi Arabia by 2020. But despite headlines and controversy, no previous book has shown how the revolution really happened. The Frackers tells the dramatic tale of how a group of ambitious and headstrong wildcatters ignored the ridicule of experts and derision of colleagues to pursue massive, long-overlooked deposits. Against all odds, they changed the world- and made astonishing fortunes in the process. Zuckerman's exclusive access enabled him to get close to men like George Mitchell, who developed a new way to drill for gas in shale rock; Harold Hamm, who discovered so much oil he's now worth more than the estate of Steve Jobs; and Aubrey McClendon, who lost more than billion on a misguided gambit. Zuckerman shows how the frackers are now using their wealth to shake up Hollywood, education, politics, sports, and other fields, much like the Rockefellers and Gettys before them. He also explores the debate over the environmental risks of fracking, and whether those risks are worth it for the United States to achieve energy independence and for the rest of the world to follow. 2014.The forgotten man: a new history of the Great Depression
By Amity Shlaes. 2007
Economics reporter analyzes the Great Depression era in the United States and posits that federal intervention in the economy lengthened…
its duration. Considers economic plans from members of Franklin Roosevelt's brain trust and alternate solutions of outsiders such as African American Father Divine and Alcoholics Anonymous founder Bill Wilson. 2007.The flamingo's smile: reflections in natural history
By Stephen Jay Gould. 1985
Ten essays investigating curiosities and oddities in natural history. A research physician presents his findings on real phenomena, such as…
odd showers of fish or frogs falling with rain; and unreal specimens, such as the Feejee mermaid--a fraudulent creature assembled from fish and animal parts. 1999.The feather quest: a North American birder's year
By Pete Dunne. 1992
This book chronicles a year spent birding. The author and his wife embarked on their adventure before dawn on New…
Year's Day, crossing North America and joining the Christmas Bird Count twelve months hence. Dunne keeps an eye on more than birds; he observes humans and the world at large. Brief foreword contributed by Roger Tory Peterson. 1992.The Delta is my home: Ehdiitat shanankat t'agoonch'uu = Uvanga Nunatarmuitmi aimayuaqtunga (Land is our storybook)
By Tom McLeod, Mindy Willett. 2008
Tom McLeod is an eleven-year-old boy from Aklavik, of mixed Gwich'in and Inuvialuit heritage. Tom tells us why his home…
in the Mackenzie Delta is a special place and why he loves to live on the land. He describes hunting for survival while being careful about how his people use the land. Grades 3-6. 2008.The Everglades: river of grass
By Marjory Stoneman Douglas. 1997
Fiftieth-anniversary edition of the 1947 history and folklore of a North American region that had been viewed as a swampy…
"wasteland." This volume includes two new chapters, describing efforts to restore and preserve this valuable source of wildlife and water. c1997.The energy of slaves: oil and the new servitude
By Andrew Nikiforuk. 2012
A radical analysis of our master-and-slave relationship to energy and a call for change. Nikiforuk makes a comparison between slavery…
and fossil fuels. Like slaveholders, we feel entitled to surplus energy and rationalize inequality, even barbarity, to get it. But endless growth is an illusion, and now that half of the world's oil has been burned, our energy slaves are becoming more expensive by the day. What we need, the author argues, is a radical new emancipation movement. c2012.The end of absence: reclaiming what we've lost in a world of constant connection
By Michael Harris. 2014
Only one generation in history (ours) will experience life both with and without the internet. For everyone who follows us,…
online life will simply be the air they breathe. Today, we revel in ubiquitous information and constant connection, rarely stopping to consider the implications for our logged-on lives. The author chronicles this massive shift, exploring what we've gained and lost in the bargain. He argues that our greatest loss has been that of absence itself -- of silence, wonder and solitude. Winner of the 2014 Governor General’s Award for Non-fiction. 2014.The end of growth
By Jeff Rubin. 2012
Economist and resource analyst Jeff Rubin is certain that the world's governments are getting it wrong - instead of moving…
us toward economic recovery, measures being taken around the globe right now are digging us into a deeper hole. Both politicians and economists are missing the fact that the real engine of economic growth has always been cheap, abundant fuel and resources, but that era is over. The end of cheap oil signals the end of growth - and the end of easy answers to renewing prosperity. c2012.The empathy exams: essays
By Leslie Jamison. 2014
A collection of essays explores empathy, using topics ranging from street violence and incarceration to reality television and literary sentimentality…
to ask questions about people's understanding of and relationships with others. Winner of the Gray Wolf Press Nonfiction Prize. 2014. The empathy exams -- Devil's bait -- La frontera -- Morphology of the hit -- Pain tours (I) : La plata perdida ; Sublime, revised ; Indigenous to the hood -- The immortal horizon -- In defense of saccharin(e) -- Fog count -- Pain tours (II) : Ex-votos ; Servicio supercompleto ; The broken heart of James Agee -- Lost boys -- Grand unified theory of female pain -- Judge's afterword / A conversation with Leslie Jamison. Uniform title: Essays.The clouded leopard: travels to landscapes of spirit and desire
By Wade Davis. 1998
Davis examines the link between the diversity of our biological landscape and cultural diversity. He argues that the more we…
destroy the biological landscapes of the Earth, the more we cause diverse cultures to assimilate with the more mainstream cultures. Davis uses his travels around the world to illustrate his argument and shares stories of his time spent with a variety of peoples throughout the world. c1998.The elephant whisperer: learning about life, loyalty and freedom from a remarkable herd of elephants
By Lawrence Anthony, Graham Spence. 2009
When South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony was asked to accept a herd of 'rogue' elephants on his reserve at Thula…
Thula, his common sense told him to refuse. But he was the herd's last chance of survival - notorious escape artists, they would all be killed if Lawrence wouldn't take them. 2009.The Harvey girls: women who opened the West
By Lesley Poling-Kempes. 1989
From the 1880s to the 1950s, the Harvey Girls went west to work in Fred Harvey's restaurants along the Santa…
Fe railway. At a time when there were "no ladies west of Dodge City and no women west of Albuquerque," they came as waitresses, but many stayed and settled, founding the struggling cattle and mining towns that dotted the region. Interviews, historical research, and photographs help re-create the Harvey Girl experience. The accounts are personal, but laced with the history the women lived: the dust bowl, the depression, and anecdotes about some of the many famous people who ate at the restaurants--Teddy Roosevelt, Shirley Temple, Bob Hope, to name a few. Winner of the 1991 New Mexico PressWomen's ZIA award. 1989.The happy camper: an essential guide to life outdoors
By Kevin Callan. 2007
A compendium of basic wilderness instruction and well-tested campsite advice from one of North America's top canoeing and outdoors experts.…
Learn how to plan your trip, pack only what's needed, and beat the bugs, stake a tent, build a fire, ward off unwanted wildlife, and paddle a canoe. Also includes using maps and a compass, camp cooking, camping with dogs and kids, bruises, blisters and Band-Aids, and cold-weather camping. 2007, c2005.