The Great Bear Rainforest: Canada's Forgotten Coast
YA-Magnificent photographs and crisp prose make a powerful statement about the need to protect the largest tract of intact temperate rainforest on Earth. Until the authors embarked on their sailing odyssey from the northern border of the United States to the panhandle of Alaska, no one had undertaken an environmental inventory of the western Canadian coastline. This area is the home of the coastal grizzly bear and teems with wildlife and old-growth trees. The grizzly's dwindling numbers indicate the historic decline of natural wilderness throughout a sizable portion of the northwestern hemisphere. The authors make the case that only by protecting very large tracts of this coastline from logging and mining can the character of this environment be preserved. At first glance, this work might appear to be another coffee-table book, but its main purpose is to inform and motivate. The panoramic views, intimate shots of flora and fauna, chronicle of the social history of the area, and generous maps make this title beautiful as well as timely. It is unfortunate that the index merely lists references to locations noted in the text rather than to biological information, which would have made it more useful for research.Cynthia J. Rieben, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VACopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.