Book Description
“My face is black is true but its not my fault but I love my name and my honest in dealing with my fellow man.”
~Callie House (1899)
In her groundbreaking new book, My Face Is Black Is True, historian Mary Frances Berry resurrects the forgotten life of Callie House (1861-1928), ex-slave, widowed Nashville washerwoman and mother of five who, seventy years before the civil rights movement, headed a demand for ex-slave reparations.
House was born into slavery in 1861 and sought African-American pensions based on those offered Union soldiers. In a brilliant and daring move, House targeted $68 million in taxes on seized rebel cotton (over $1.2 billion in 2005 dollars) and demanded it as repayment for centuries of unpaid labor.
Dr. Berry tells how the Justice Department, persuaded by the postmaster general, banned the activities of Callie House’s town organizers, violated her constitutional rights to assembly and to petition Congress, and falsely accused her of mail fraud; the federal officials had the post office open the mail of almost all African-Americans, denying delivery on the smallest pretext. Berry shows how African-American newspapers, most of which preached meekness toward whites, systematically ignored or derided Mrs. House’s movement, which was essentially a poor person’s movement. Despite being denied mail service and support from the African-American establishment of the day, Mrs. House’s Ex-Slave Association flourished until she was imprisoned by the Justice Department for violating the postal laws of the United States; suddenly deprived of her spirit, leadership and ferocity, the first national grassroots African-American movement fell apart.
Callie House, so long forgotten that her grave has been lost, emerges as a courageous pioneering activist, a forerunner of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. My Face Is Black Is True is a fascinating book of original scholarship that reclaims a magnificent heroine.
Customer Reviews:
The Brilliance of this Historiography.......2007-07-06
Berry's brilliance as a scholar is exhibited in this text. She not only introduces the heroine Callie House, as a significant revolutionary who served jailed time for her leadership in this reparations movement, Berry uses House's story as a foundation to report how former enslaved Africans were mistreated systematically. Through use of a plethora of the state of Tennessee records, scholarly materials and various other documents, Dr. Berry introduces the first reparations movement to the reader.
It was often painful to read how former enslaved persons were treated as freedpersons, since all 8 of my great-grandparents were born between the 1870s to 1890. Knowing that they were children when their parents were so sorely abused was a very vivid and poignant point.
Dr. Berry is to be commended for creating this historiography that not only revealed House's story, it showed how callous the federal government was toward Black people during Reconstruction, and that this callousness trickled to the vicissitudes of everyday life and toil, from healthcare, employment, shelter, and a quality of life that all people deserve to have. Five starts to the senior scholar! - Colita Nichols Fairfax
PRIDE.......2007-01-03
This book really gives one PRIDE in knowing that people exsisted like CALLI HOUSE. Whatever ones ethicity, this is a book which should be read by all and the educational system should make this be a requiremnet. The population must be told and ugly story of what SLAVERY was and still is in the HYPOCRITICAL united staes.
Good unknown history.......2007-01-03
As a historian and lover of obscure history in particular, I have to give Miss Berry (who I met in 1999 at a historian's conference in Toronto and found to be an excellent conversationalist) high marks for the untold story of Callie House.
Callie House tried to form an organization to encourage the government to grant living ex-slaves (this was in the early 20th century when many were still alive). She tried to do this with many strikes against her, facing racism, sexism, and classism (she did not have much formal education). Unfortuantely, government harrassment tried to destroy her movement.
As mentioned, little is documented about Miss House's personal life, but being a Tennesseean like Miss House, Miss Berry does a good job in using her knowledge of the area and historical documents to fill in the holes.
However, in the last chapter Miss Berry links Miss House's movement to the modern day reparations movement. One can argue that there is a considerable stretch between the noble effort of a woman to get deserved pensions for elderly ex-slaves and the modern snowball's chance in hell Quioxtic endeavor to get reperations for the descendants of long-dead slaves, but Miss Berry tries to put a good face on the modern movement. She notes the 2002 reparations march, forgetting to mention that it was very poorly attended and almost universally dismissed for its outlandish and crackpot speeches and states that the reparations movement is mostly supported by the poor black masses (I have to disagree- in my experience it has usually been supported by a segment of black nationalists with some high school or college education).
But that's another story, I'll admit. In either case, regardless of your opinions of the current debate, this is a VERY good and interesting read.
Another Racial Alibi Eliminated.......2006-05-19
Since the Civil Rights Movement it seems most "Whites" and amazingly even some "Blacks" have bought the argument that slavery and its legacy were so long ago that no living African-American could rightfully claim being a victim of it.
This book shows that argument as being just another shameless attempt to avoid owning up to our nation's original sin. The fact that "White" leaders right after the Civil War used other equally specious rationales to avoid paying the piper for their unconscionable crime is telling. Ms. Berry's book should definitely be taught in every school in our guilty nation. And broadcast on every so-called news show. I'll hold my breath until Hollywood decides to make the movie.
"My Face Is Black Is True" is a must-read for any American who considers themselves educated.
Should be required reading for American History classes.......2006-03-17
This wellwritten and extensively researched book reveals not only the drive and persistence of post-Civil War African Americans in seeking reparations for ex-slaves and war veterans, but what can be accomplished with little more than a basic ability to read and write and a talent for organizing and motivating one's colleagues. Callie House is truly an American heroine and her efforts to help black citizens obtain what they richly deserved from the U.S. government, despite obstacles which would have made a lesser person roll over, should be recognized and remembered.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Black Issues Book Review, published by Thomson Gale on November 1, 2005. The length of the article is 441 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: My Face Is Black Is True: Callie House and the Struggle for Ex-Slave Reparations.(Book Review)
Author: R. Owen Williams
Publication:
Black Issues Book Review (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 7
Issue: 6
Page: 78(2)
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Average customer rating:
- Definitive Book on the Fork-Tailed Devil
- info packed book
- This is the P-38 Bible, pure and simple.
- Required reading for P-38 Fans
- Lots of great pictures and detailed history of the P-38
|
The Lockheed P-38 Lightning
Warren M. Bodie
Manufacturer: Motorbooks Intl
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Binding: Hardcover
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Roaring Glory Warbirds, Vol. 6: Lockheed Lightning P-38
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ASIN: 0962935905 |
Customer Reviews:
Definitive Book on the Fork-Tailed Devil.......2002-06-21
Warren Bodie's book is a marvel of completeness, including photos of all series and one-offs, and favorably presents what was arguably the best all-around fighter of World War Two. All the subjective criticisms of the famous Lockheed twin-boom plane are clearly discussed in their proper historical context, with ample support from the main historical actors. The book also demonstrates that the P-38, as a good child of Clarence "Kelly" Johnson's genius, was several years ahead of its time both in its technology and in the capacity of air strategists and pilots to fully exploit the advances it had over current aviation designs, as well as to foresee its potential. For example, the P-51 Mustang was a pig (and used the same Allison engine of the P-38) before being refitted with the famous Rolls-Royce Merlin engine which made it the masterpiece we know; just imagine a P-38 with two Merlins, something that never happened but that could have dramatically changed the air war before 1944 in all theaters. Bodie demonstrates that the P-38 was already the long-range fighter the Allies needed a couple of years before the P-51D and P-47N, but was stupidly underused and underdeveloped; its firepower was overwhelming and almost unparalleled throughout the war; it could turn with any enemy fighter and outrun most of them and, finally, having another engine was a priceless safeguard in the long flights over the Pacific Ocean and the Mediterranean. Highly recommended reading about my favorite fighter plane.
info packed book.......2000-10-21
This book is a must for anybody researching the P-38. It gives perfomance data and is packed full of tech data. It also gives you a picture of how the plane performed against german and japanese fighter during ww2
This is the P-38 Bible, pure and simple........1999-09-22
If you had to select only one P-38 book from the 50+ on the shelves, this is the one. Excellent quality from author Warren Bodie, outstanding quality in production, details that just don't quit, and a ton of photos. What more can I say. If there is one fault with this book, it has so much information, an index would be nice.
Required reading for P-38 Fans.......1998-03-12
I have been a fan of the P-38 Lightning for many years, despite having no personal ties to it. I had been looking for a book on the Lightning which would combine pictures and text to tell its story. Bodie's book is well written and shows his passion for the subject. It is well organized and there are many excellent pictures (including a color section) accompanied by wonderfully informative captions. If there is a fault with the book, it is that Bodie spends perhaps too much time on the period before the P-38 was developed. Background is important, but I felt that it was somewhat excessive. Still, this is a required book for any Lockheed P-38 Lightning fan's bookshelf. I struck up a correspondence with Bodie after reading the book and found him to be very friendle and helpful in my research on the P-38.
Lots of great pictures and detailed history of the P-38.......1997-11-18
Warren Bodie has done his research and brought together a wonderful collection of pictures of the P-38. There is a vast amount of detail, which sometimes becomes repetitive. Included are production and testing history, and some highlights of the P-38 operations in WWII. This book is not for the casual reader unless you just want to look at the pictures.
Book Description
Originally designed as a high-altitude interceptor, the P-38 was the first U.S. fighter of WWII to compare favorably with the Spitfire and Me-109. The twin-tailed, single seat "Fork Tailed Devil" carried four .50-caliber machine guns and a 20mm cannon, and could fly at speeds above 400 mph. An extremely successful design, over 9500 Lightnings were built by V-J Day in 1945. Originally classified "Restricted", this manual was declassified long ago and is here reprinted in book form. This affordable facsimile has been reformatted, and color images appear as black and white. Care has been taken however to preserve the integrity of the text.
Customer Reviews:
Actual WWII era flight training manual for the P-38 -- how cool!.......2006-07-01
It's one thing to read books about the P-38 Lightning, and to built model kits. It's another thing to have this training manual, which tells you all about how to fly this plane. What's surprising is that it's not a bunch of technical gobbledy-gook, but a pretty entertaining read filled with photos and diagrams, and even cartoons, that tell you how to fly this amazing warbird. I showed this to some friends at an airshow and they all wanted to steal it from me! So I guess that's as good a compliment as any. I highly recommend this and the other Flight Manuals in the series.
Average customer rating:
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Pilots Manual for Lockheed P-38 Lightning (American Flight Manuals)
Manufacturer: Aviation Book Co
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0879940190 |
Book Description
The 'Cadillac' of USAAF fighters in World War 2, the Lightning was a highly innovative design produced by Lockheed of Burbank, California, in response to a challenging requirement for a long range, high speed and high altitude fighter to escort the AAF's rapidly expanding B-17 bomber fleet. To meet the criterion laid down in the requirement the company adopted a revolutionary twin boom layout and supercharged Allison engines. The latter initially proved troublesome, but the gremlins were eventually sorted out and the type went into action both in Europe and the Pacific.
Book Description
Lightning! One of the best-named aircraft of WW2, the Lockheed P-38 was also one of the few fighters in production throughout hostilities. Immediately recognizable by its twin-boom tail layout, the P-38 Lightning was one of the mainstays of the USAAF's fighter inventory. Deployed in all theaters, Lightnings excelled in most, being one of the few American fighters armed with cannon. Subject to lengthy development throughout the war, the P-38 exemplified the technical peak reached by aeronautical engineers in the 1940s.
Average customer rating:
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Lockheed P-38 Lightning (Warbird Tech Series , Vol 2)
Frederick A. Johnsen
Manufacturer: Voyageur Press (MN)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Aviation
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ASIN: 0933424655 |
Book Description
The WarbirdTech series is the first new, innovative look at military aircraft to arrive in the marketplace in the last fifteen years. Individual volumes in this series provide a first-ever "layman's technical" analysis and review of the world's most exciting combat aircraft. Included are photos, drawings and excerpts from previously "secret" and "restricted" technical manuals produced by the government and the aircraft manufacturers. Included are vintage photos of aircraft during prototype and manufacturing stages, exploded views, cutaways and phantom drawings form tech manuals, disassembled aircraft, rare variants and experimental models etc. Special emphasis is placed on the unique and ground-breaking design and performance aspects of each aircraft.
This series is for the enthusiast who has read all the combat stories, seen all the camouflage and markings books and now wants to learn the fascinating technical details behind the design and performance of combat aircraft.
Customer Reviews:
Warbird Low Tech Book.......2002-11-09
First the good: Lots of pictures, some diagrams right out of the repair manuals, covers lots of ground, nice size at aprox 8 1/2 x 11 in., good forward by Lockheed test pilot Tony LeVier, some coverage of rare and never built variants. But for a book that is touted as a "fresh approach" using a more "technical" format, this book does not fulfill. Not so much in what it says or shows, but in what it leaves out. Not much of the Allison engine story, no technical details on wing loading or airfoil type, not even any specification charts. Other negatives include: More pictures than text, which leaves very little space in the 100 pages for the story. This forces the author to jump around, sometimes with each paragraph on a totally different subject. Only two aces are covered. All in all, it comes off as a low budget effort. If this book were to sell for (cheaper), and be described as an introduction and overview of the P-38, I would consider it a fair deal. But at twice the price, and sold as a technical approach, it is somewhat of a disapointment.
Average customer rating:
|
Lockheed P-38 J-L Lightning
Robert Peczkowski
Manufacturer: Mushroom Model Publications,Poland
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 8391717828 |
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- A Short History of Secret Experiments
- A Short Review of Secret Experiments
- Chilling
- Chillingly accurate with ominous implications for the future
- What an interesting and insightful book
|
Undue Risk: Secret State Experiments on Humans (State Secrets)
Jonathan D. Moreno
Manufacturer: W. H. Freeman
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ASIN: 0716731428 |
Book Description
In 1994, Jonathan Moreno became a senior staff member of a special commission created by President Clinton to investigate allegations of government-sponsored radiation research on unknowing citizens during the cold war. The top secret documents he helped to declassify revealed a shocking truth-- that human experimentation played an extensive role in this country's attempts to build and protect against weapons of mass destruction.In Undue Risk, Moreno presents the first comprehensive history of the use of human subjects in atomic, biological, and chemical warfare experiments from World War II to the twenty-first century. From the courtrooms of Nuremberg to the battlefields of the Gulf War, Undue Risk explores a variety of government policies and specific cases, including plutonium injections into unwitting hospital patients, U.S. government attempts to recruit Nazi medical scientists, the subjection of soldiers to atomic blast fallout, secret LSD and mescaline studies, and the feeding of irradiated oatmeal to children. It is also the first book to go behind the scenes and reveal the government's struggle with the ethics of human experimentation and the evolution of agonizing policy choices on unfamiliar moral terrain.As the threat of foreign and domestic terrorist attack continues to grow, the need for our country to defend itself against insidious weapons is greater than ever. Can a democracy justify using humans in potentially risky experiments in order to answer scientific questions vital to national security? Exploring the possibilities, Undue Risk highlights a program of human experimentation that is a moral model for all others, civilian and military.
Customer Reviews:
A Short History of Secret Experiments.......2003-06-06
Undue Risk: Secret State Experiments on Humans by Jonathan D. Moreno
This very readable book faces the uncomfortable reality of using humans for medical experiments. Government secrecy is corrosive to democracy, and is a true threat to our way of life. The use of human guinea pigs shows something rotten at the heart of society's political rulers.
Chapter 5 tells about radiation experiments. There was a need to study the health risks from inhalation or ingestion to determine the toxic levels. Releasing radioactive products into the air was part of deliberate policy that occurred hundreds of times (pp.153-4). Chapter 6 tells how the Nuremberg Code was adopted for testing ABC weapons (p.166). This rule prevailed in the civilian hierarchy but lacked traction in the military medical culture (p.184); this reflected the political struggles (p.187). Chapter 7 tells of the experiments with hallucinogens as a military secret weapon during WW II (pp.190-1), and afterwards. The Blauer Case tells how state hospitals' experiments killed patients (pp.194-8)! Scanty record keeping on atomic bomb explosions was continued with Agent Orange in Vietnam (p.206). The known dangers from uranium mines were disregarded by the AEC (p.221). Uranium miners fate was to die in their forties for reasons of national security (p.226). After Nuremberg, only America among Western countries experimented on prisoners (p.230).
Chapter 8 tells of the attacks on the Nuremberg Code rules. Pages 252-3 tell why it is legal to experiment on members of the Armed Forces: the Supreme Court said so! Nerve gas experiments were suspended in 1969 (p.263). President Nixon asked for the ratification of the 1925 Geneva Accord to prohibit the first use of biological and chemical weapons. The1977 Senate hearings on the biological testing program resulted in new ethics of research for government agencies (p.265). Chapter 9 tells of the 1991 Gulf War aftermath: many veterans reported illnesses. One explanation was the drug alleged to protect our soldiers caused this problem. PB was never tested or approved, so its use was reckless and a poor experiment (p.269). Pyridostigmine bromide was never approved against chemical weapons (p.270). The FDA created an exceptional "Rule 23(d)". Did PB react with organophosphates to create harm (p.272)? The lack of records prevents any investigation. The last section on '91 Bravo' reads like a very optimistic and cheerful ending to this story.
A Short Review of Secret Experiments.......2003-06-04
Undue Risk: Secret State Experiments on Humans by Jonathan D. Moreno
Calling chemical warfare "weapons of mass destruction" is misleading since they are more limited than atomic or biological weapons. Biological weapons can turn against their users. Only atomic weapons have enormous destructive capacity (p.xv). The Advisory Committee on Human Radiation documented secret experiments on humans from WW II to the present day. Biological warfare goes back to ancient times: placing decaying bodies into a water supply or launching them into a besieged fort. There is much more known about biological and chemical weapons today than before 1992. Government secrecy is corrosive to democracy, and is a true threat to our way of life. The use of human guinea pigs shows something rotten at the heart of society's political rulers. This very readable book faces the uncomfortable reality of using humans for medical experiments.
Bacteria and chemicals are hard to control and deliver effectively but relatively cheap to produce and transport. Testing on humans has a long international history, as is hiding these facts (p.4). The Nazi doctors trial at Nuremberg set a standard for military-medical human experiments. Hundreds of other doctors were never tried. A "crime against humanity" was defined as the reckless pursuit of scientific knowledge, or sheer sadism. Experiments on humans predated the Nazis; in 1931 the powerful chemical manufacturers were caught using patients in hospitals (p.64). Then there was America's own wartime research (pp. 65-6). But America was not riddled with a hate-mongering pathology that permitted the systematic injury of certain groups of humans (p.79).
Chapter 4 tells of Nazi scientists brought to America because of their expertise. They now used American soldiers rather than concentration camp victims (p.89)! Similar experiments were done by Japanese Unit 731 (pp.103-7). Their history was kept secret to protect Army biological weapon testing at Fort Detrick, whose budget was second to the Manhattan project (p.109). The US military wanted this information on crop destruction and human experiments. A Soviet war crimes trial documented these facts (p.111-4). Germ warfare charges in Korea and China are discussed on pages 115-6.
Chilling.......2003-05-25
I used to work at an ethical review board, and I read whatever books I could find on medical research ethics. This is the most memorable one I read. It was shocking but fascinating. I would recommend this book to anyone working in clinical research or medical ethics.
Chillingly accurate with ominous implications for the future.......2002-06-26
Undue Risk is a clearly and meticulously constructed documentation of over 50 years of medical and military experiments world wide, with an emphasis on those done in the U.S. It is one of the most important books written on the subject, and it is a must read for anyone concerned about the ethics and interests of government.
Moreno limits himself to information that is documentable. He focuses on the medical community as handmaidens to the military establishment. For example, his thorough and horrific accounts of Dr. Ishii's murderous medical experiments on thousands of helpless captives during WWII in Japan, and his grim comment that despite his criminality, Dr. Ishii today enjoys high social status and wealth, partially due to intervention by the United States, are a testimony to Moreno's clear insight into the pervasive nature of intellectual greed and the grand cover-up of government when it wishes to acquire knowledge.
It is unfortunate that Moreno could not cover the misdeeds of the neuro-sciences. But with the neuro/psychopharmacological arsenal of amnesiacs, sedatives, ECT, and hypnosis it is difficult to find those survivors who can clearly articulate the tale of what was done to them in the name of science. To his credit, Moreno does refer to the CIA's MKULTRA experiments, and gives a nice insight into the LSD death of Fort Detrick's Dr. Frank Olsen, who specialized in airborne delivery of disease as a biological weapon. This book is a must read. It is aurhoritative, restrained in nature, but completely accurate.
What an interesting and insightful book.......2000-06-02
Mr. Moreno's stunning account of experiments done by the Nazis was very interesting. His great writing made the book a page turner and I applaud Mr. Moreno for writing it. I am looking forward to reading more of his books.
Average customer rating:
|
Medical assault.(Review) (book reviews): An article from: Issues in Science and Technology
Martin W. Lewis
Manufacturer: National Academy of Sciences
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
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ASIN: B00099MEO2
Release Date: 2005-07-28 |
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Issues in Science and Technology, published by National Academy of Sciences on December 22, 1999. The length of the article is 1805 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Medical assault.(Review) (book reviews)
Author: Martin W. Lewis
Publication:
Issues in Science and Technology (Refereed)
Date: December 22, 1999
Publisher: National Academy of Sciences
Volume: 16
Issue: 2
Page: 82
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, published by Educational Foundation for Nuclear Science, Inc. on November 1, 1999. The length of the article is 977 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Undue Risk: Secret State Experiments on Humans.(Review) (book reviews)
Author: Michael Flynn
Publication:
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (Refereed)
Date: November 1, 1999
Publisher: Educational Foundation for Nuclear Science, Inc.
Volume: 55
Issue: 6
Page: 61
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
A contemporary view of the effects of wood, as used for building and fuel, and of deforestation on the development of civilization.
Until the ascendancy of fossil fuels, wood has been the principal fuel and building material from the dawn of civilization. Its abundance or scarcity greatly shaped, as A Forest Journey ably relates, the culture, demographics, economy, internal and external politics, and technology of successive societies over the millennia.
The book's comprehensive coverage of the major role forests have played in human life—told with grace, fluency, imagination, and humor—gained it recognition as a Harvard Classic in Science and World History and as one of Harvard's "One-Hundred Great Books." Others receiving the honor include such luminaries as Stephen Jay Gould and E. O. Wilson. This new paperback edition will add a prologue and an epilogue to reflect the current situation in which forests have become imperative for humanity's survival. 50 black & white photos and illustrations, bibliography, index.
Customer Reviews:
Compelling first half, disappointing second half.......2007-08-18
This book is what is says it is: the story of wood and civilization. That sounds a bit odd, but you will be amazed to see how many ways wood contributed to the growth of civilization, as fuel, material for houses, ships and wagons, as support for digging mines, molds for crafting other materials, and so on. Only when coal and oil become available as alternative fuels, and especially when coal can be used to smelt and forge iron, does wood recede somewhat in importance.
The basic structure of the story is simple. Some city or state develops because it has ready access to forests. It eventually destroys the forests, with no thought of the future. At that point, it goes abroad to purchase or conquer new lands with virgin forests. But someone in those new lands manages to build up their own civilization and defeat the old-timers. The new civilization then repeats the pattern.
The first half of the book tells this story in a lively but necessarily superficial way for ancient civilizations from Mesopotamia to Rome. Presumably something similar was happening in China, India, and the New World civilizations of the Maya, Aztecs, and Incas, but we hear very little about those. The stories are compelling, and they will make you see these civilizations in a new light.
The second half of the book focuses on England, some New World colonies such as Madeira and Brazil, and the United States. These chapters become much more detailed - - we meet individual foresters, iron forgers, and learn about particular pieces of legislation. Here Perlin has written a much more traditional history, with a less vigorous story.
Thus, the two halves of the book are unbalanced: the first half sweeping, the second half unnecessarily detailed. Perlin also gives no thought to case selection: why talk about England and not Sweden? Why not Russia? Without such considerations about the overall structure of his narrative, he tends to give us a collection of anecdotes more than a compelling argument.
Oddly, the book leaves off exactly where you wish it would continue. Perlin gives only passing attention to 20th-century forest policy in the United States. US forests have grown in size over this century, even as the Forest Service and private landowners have clearcut huge swaths of our forests. Is this an example of successful management, or not? Why or why not?
Perlin should provide a similar analysis of tropical deforestation today. Will Brazil, Indonesia, and others follow the US example and reforest their lands a few decades after clearing them? Or will the follow the example of civilizations such as Persia and end up trying to survive in denuded semi-deserts?
Those are the real questions for such a book, and it is a shame that Perlin did not address them.
Essential Book About the Role of Man and our Environment.......2006-07-11
This book is an amazing find. After reading it several years ago we have been giving it as a gift to everyone we know. You will not be able to put it down once you start reading it. So thoughly researched, it will change the entire way you think about the role or forests and trees in the history of man.
An important and monumental history of fuel and the tragedy of the commons.......2006-01-15
This is one of the most important books I have ever read.
The relevance for our times of this highly engaging history of how the earliest civilizations to late 19th-century America have exploited wood (primarily as fuel, then as building material) and cleared forests cannot be overstated. Again and again, Perlin shows that the tragedy of the commons repeats itself throughout the patterns of human history, and the cycle has continued to the present day when we have the choice to break it by developing renewable, clean energy.
Beginning with the Mesopotamians, and continuing unabated to the present day, civilizations have access to forests previously admired and considered sacred. Greed for economic gain and/or military power, not the necessities of life (for which the forests amply provide) motivates Man to cut down forests at an increasingly alarming pace, as everyone wants to get in on the profits. Enormous quantities of wood are often cut down to produce a small quantum of finished products, such as a few kilograms of iron or refined sugar. The exploitation of forests is almost completely unregulated until it is too late for governments to do much about it. Often governments themselves dismiss or respond insufficiently to concerns by educated citizens, who warn of economic and ecological devastation if the free-for-all logging continues. And often this is because government members are well-placed to make personal profits from the wood/fuel trade. The individual cutters don't think to replant what they have taken, or even to spare saplings and young trees - why, when there's so much of it for oneself? Within several hundred years, there is little or no wood left (the latter situation was more common). The civilization declines for environmental devastation (such as large-scale erosion) and lack of fuel (as they are no longer able to compete with other civilizations and their militaries who still have access to wood, and there is little or no wood left for basic necessities such as heating and cooking). We see that the only civilizations which have exploited wood on a large scale and yet escaped this cycle were the modern-day civilizations that began to rely on coal and other polluting fuels, such as Industrial Revolution-era Britain, and eventually the United States of America.
The book goes into far more detail than this, crammed with information on the key role wood has played in wars, alliances, the building of civilizations, the power of civilizations and, again, their decline.
I found this book fascinating and read it from cover to cover. Its relevance for today is in showing us that fuel shortage problems are nothing new, and that the survival of civilizations has always depended on fuel not running out, and likely always will, for as long as we aspire to live beyond the bare necessities of life. Our present-day civilizations are no exception, but as we all know, the human population and therefore the human need is much higher than it ever has been before, and many of us are not aware of the ecological implications of our lifestyles, as we are so far removed from the natural ecology in cities. But we can make a difference before it is too late. Not only is an awareness of history a wake-up call if we choose to educate ourselves, which would encourage us to live more wisely in taking care of the environment around us, but environmentally-friendly fuel technologies are emerging for us to live at an even higher level of comfort and health than ever before.
The author, along with his Nobel-prize winning collaborators at UCSB, Drs. Walter Kohn and Alan Heeger, are avid researchers and promoters of solar and other renewable energy sources: watch this space! The author is also affiliated with a great website promoting solar energy, explaining solar technology and delving into some of the history of solar energy use (which goes back to the time of the ancient Greeks!): www.californiasolarcenter.org.
I cannot recommend this book more highly. We all live in a world which continues to be so unwisely exploited on our behalf that it could mean the decline of us all - this book is therefore essential reading for every single person in our time.
Ambitious.......2002-05-17
Perlin's book is an ambitious overview of the use of wood in world civilization. Therein lies the both the book's strengths and weaknesses. Like any work that attempts to do a global history, inevitably some regions and some eras get very short shrift. Still, A Forest Journey is interesting, and well worth reading by anyone with an interest in environmental or forest history.
Rise and fall of civilizations.......2001-09-01
This book is a study on the rise and fall of civilizations, as caused by their management of wood resources, or in other words energy resources. Perlin tells a convincing tale on what makes a civilization tick. This is a very good book to read for anybody who cares about what the world is coming to, and perhaps even for those who don't. It is filled with fascinating historical material.
The limitations of the book are that Perlin is not as great a storyteller as DC Peattie (many of the stories here would make a sweeping tale in the hands of a truly gifted writer) and that the choice of civilizations treated is very much oriented towards the US.
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