Where Dwarfs Reign: A Tropical Rain Forest in Puerto Rico

I acquired this book 20 years ago and had glanced through it before storing it, as I was embarking on an adventure of my own. As I was sorting out debris after Hurricane Maria devastated the island last year, I found it in a damp box in my parent's broken down shed. I feel I have found a unique treasure and so regret not reading it back when I worked at the rain forest, or even before the hurricane. The author went through a great deal of effort to offer a well researched account of the rain forest. She will take you through a 101 history class highlighted with geology, botanic, agronomy, biology, meteorology, zoology, and so many other fundamental aspects of the forest. She even dares, in a well spoken way, to explain some of the local cultural beliefs on the forest. I loved it, and I can't wait to go back to forest with a renewed vision of it.

This is an excellently written and illustrated account of the history, development and natural history of the Caribbean National Forest in Puerto Rico. Although the title implies concentration on the dwarf or cloud forest, at the highest elevations, the book is a balanced account of the whole forest. The author has taken great pains to talk to those who live and work in the forest and who know it well, and her interpretation of their stories is accurate and readable. I have worked in this forest and, always suspicious of `journalists' accounts of `science', I was very pleased to note that the descriptions of visits to the forest, and the research which is done there, give a very vivid account of what it is like. The author has a nice style, and is able to introduce aspects of basic biology without being condescending to the reader.After an Introduction the author covers, in 15 chapters, the early history of the forest, from pre-Columbian and Spanish colonial times through to the last century of US sovereignty; the effects of hurricanes, to which the forest is very well adapted; the effects of man from both agricultural and forestry activities; the geology and natural and social history of the area; and past and relatively recent conflicts on how the forest should be managed to satisfy the varying requirements of recreation [including the deleterious effects water extraction], forestry, research and the desire to preserve/restore the forest to something like its original virgin condition. There is a list of 80+ useful references for those who wish to follow up topics in more detail. The few typographic and spelling errors do not detract from the well produced and presented aspect of the book.