A Fierce Green Fire: The American Environmental Movement

A Fierce Green Fire provides an in-depth account of the history of the environmental movement in America. Phillip Shabecoff, writer for the New York Times, writes with much experience in the field of environmentalism. The book maintains a nice balance of description and conclusion, and holds the interest of the audience by noting specific examples and stories from both national and grassroots environmental efforts. The book is very specific and introduces several original theories regarding the evolution of this social movement. Shabecoff maintains an appropriate and rational tone throughout the book as he explains the ups and downs of the effectiveness of the movement between decades and among presidents. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone truly interested in environmental science, as it compiles information from many sources into one fantastic account.

This book is very thorough in covering the entire history of the American environmental movement. It starts by describing the waste and destruction caused by the European explorers who would later colonize and settle the vast, seemingly untouched American continent. At first it seemed that nobody knew of or cared about environmental protection, but eventually a few voices started calling out for reform. People started to realize that they could not do whatever they wanted to the earth and not suffer the consequences. Out of early movements to protect wilderness lands and wildlife by organizations such as the Audobon Society and the Sierra Club, environmentalism started to increase its ranks. It also broadened its range of issues to take on pollution, toxic waste dumps, and sustainable uses of natural resources. The book describes the second wave of environmentalism as a militant and passionate cause, and the third wave as more conciliatory and willing to work with business and industry. It ends on a pessimistic note, describing the antienvironmental policies of George W. Bush and what must be done to combat these types of actions in order to protect the earth. Overall, I liked this book. It presented the viewpoints of all different kinds of environmentalists, ranging from wildlife conservationists to adovactes of socialism, governmental regulation, anti-industry tree-huggers, conservatives, and even the radical, violent eco-thugs who blow up whaling ships. The book was somewhat biased against industry and the free market, even if the author probably wouldn't admit it. I didn't really appreciate some of the closed-minded bashing of conservative Republicans; some are really bad, such as George W. Bush, but others did help the environment, such as Teddy Roosevelt. Overall, however, this book was not completely liberal propaganda, and it was interesting to learn about where environmentalism came from and what its goals are.