{"product_id":"the-quiet-world-saving-alaskas-wilderness-kingdom-18791960-isbn-9780062005960","title":"The Quiet World: Saving Alaska's Wilderness Kingdom, 1879-1960","description":"In this fascinating follow-up to his \u003cem\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/em\u003ebestseller \u003cem\u003eWilderness Warrior\u003c\/em\u003e, acclaimed historian Douglas Brinkley offers a riveting, expansive look at the past and present battle to preserve Alaska’s wilderness. Brinkley explores the colorful diversity of Alaska’s wildlife, arrays the forces that have wreaked havoc on its primeval arctic refuge—from Klondike Gold Rush prospectors to environmental disasters like the Exxon-Valdez oil spill—and documents environmental heroes from Theodore Roosevelt to Dwight Eisenhower and beyond. Not merely a record of Alaska’s past, \u003cem\u003eQuiet World \u003c\/em\u003eis a compelling call-to-arms for sustainability, conservationism, and conscientious environmental stewardship—a warning that the land once called Seward’s Folly may go down in history as America’s Greatest Mistake.\u003cbr\u003e | \u003cp\u003eA riveting history of America's most beautiful natural resources, \u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e documents the heroic fight waged by the U.S. federal government from 1879 to 1960 to save wild Alaska—Mount McKinley, the Tongass and Chugach national forests, Gates of the Arctic, Glacier Bay, Lake Clark, and the Coastal Plain of the Beaufort Sea, among other treasured landscapes—from the extraction industries. Award-winning historian Douglas Brinkley traces the wilderness movement in Alaska, from John Muir to Theodore Roosevelt to Aldo Leopold to Dwight D. Eisenhower, with narrative verve. Basing his research on extensive new archival material, Brinkley shows how a colorful band of determined environmentalists created the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge just before John F. Kennedy became president.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBrinkley introduces a lively gallery of characters influential in preserving Alaska's wilderness resources: the indomitable U.S. Supreme Court justice William O. Douglas, who championed the Brooks Range; charming Ivy League explorer Charles Sheldon, who led the campaign to create Denali National Park; intrepid Bob Marshall, who cofounded The Wilderness Society; hermit illustrator Rockwell Kent, who lived in isolation on Fox Island like a modern Thoreau; nature photographer Ansel Adams, whose image \u003cem\u003eMount McKinley and Wonder Lake\u003c\/em\u003e set off a tsunami of public interest in America's tallest peak; and U.S. Fish and Wildlife biologist Rachel Carson, who promoted proper ocean stewardship; among many more.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWildlife fervently comes to life in \u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e: Brinkley tells incredible stories about the sea otters in the Aleutians, moose in the Kenai Peninsula, and birdlife across the Yukon Delta expanse while exploring the devastating effects that reckless overfishing, seal slaughter, and aerial wolf hunting have wrought on Alaska's once-abundant fauna. While taking into account \u003cem\u003eExxon Valdez\u003c\/em\u003e–like oil spills, \u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e mainly celebrates how the U.S. government has preserved many of Alaska's great wonders for future generations to enjoy.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“An important book.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Houston Chronicle\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A richly detailed, passionate and partisan account. . . . In lush prose, [Brinkley] captures Alaska’s pristine beauty.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Minneapolis Star Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A very readable history of the preservationist movement across the nation.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Seattle Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e succeeds as a steadily paced and well-researched history. But what happily makes this sprawling story so readable is how the Rice University scholar lovingly spins a tale of how ‘a noble band of conservationist revolutionaries’ saved Alaska-from its exploiters and for the rest of us. . . .\u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e brims with vivid characters.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Cleveland Plain Dealer\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A scrupulous, dramatic chronicle of the complex struggle to protect Alaska’s glorious wilderness and wildlife in the years before it became a state. . . .Essential to understanding today’s environmental challenges, Brinkley’s Alaskan history and pantheon of valiant conservationists is boldly original, enlightening, enthralling, and profoundly moving.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist, starred review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Douglas Brinkley has written a sweeping, blow-by-blow account of the struggle to preserve the last great remnants of American wilderness. An engaging appraisal of the crucial skirmishes in the battle over wild Alaska, \u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e is populated not only by the requisite luminaries like John Muir and Ansel Adams, but also by a cast of quirky, unexpected characters. \u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e is a fascinating and important read.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eJon Krakauer\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A poignant cautionary tale for policymakers considering quick get-rich fixes to long-term problems with ecological implications. . . . In Brinkley’s hands, the still-raging battle to save Alaska’s wild character is riveting.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Christian Science Monitor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Engrossing. . . . \u003cem\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/em\u003e brims over with information and insight, passion and insistence. . . . A bit like Alaska itself: large, formidable, raw and ultimately unforgettable.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Brinkley carves well-known figures with the tools of a skilled biographer. . . . This volume is required reading for anyone even mildly interested in the antecedents to U.S. environmental policy in the 21st century.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Los Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“What makes the scope of this book so remarkable is that Brinkley doesn’t limit it to those who wielded direct political or economic power. . . . \u003ci\u003eThe Quiet World\u003c\/i\u003e has must to teach present and future generations on the importance of preserving a place which, at its very heart, belongs to us all.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Oregonian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harper","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44889184436453,"sku":"NP9780062005960","price":29.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780062005960.jpg?v=1730230702","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/the-quiet-world-saving-alaskas-wilderness-kingdom-18791960-isbn-9780062005960","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}