Sean Bala reviewed The Adirondacks by Paul Schneider
Review of 'The Adirondacks' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I grew up in the Adirondacks in upstate New York and though I knew quite a bit about the famous State Park declared "Forever Wild, Forever Free." The biggest shock to me from this book was the fact that the Adirondacks have always been very active sights of human activity, including attempts to create agricultural land, mining, and industries. Schneider navigates well through the stories and complexities. The central premise of the book is that the Adirondacks were the first place that Americans really began to think about the concept of wilderness or wild places. The meaning of the world "wilderness" has gone through multiple iterations over history that are perfect demonstrations of the way that Westerners generally think about nature. The book tries to look at the Adirondacks through three ways. First, as a history or series of stories about the park. Second, a contemporary examination of life in …
I grew up in the Adirondacks in upstate New York and though I knew quite a bit about the famous State Park declared "Forever Wild, Forever Free." The biggest shock to me from this book was the fact that the Adirondacks have always been very active sights of human activity, including attempts to create agricultural land, mining, and industries. Schneider navigates well through the stories and complexities. The central premise of the book is that the Adirondacks were the first place that Americans really began to think about the concept of wilderness or wild places. The meaning of the world "wilderness" has gone through multiple iterations over history that are perfect demonstrations of the way that Westerners generally think about nature. The book tries to look at the Adirondacks through three ways. First, as a history or series of stories about the park. Second, a contemporary examination of life in the Park. Third, an interesting case study for environmental ethics and conservation that gets at broader philosophical questions about our relationship with wilderness. I think that Schneider is most successful with the last element. He shows how the tensions inherent in a protected wildlife area with a substantial year-round population. He talks about the tensions between people wanting to manage the forest versus those who want it to remain untouched. The Adirondacks are a microcosm of these broader conversations in ecology. I actually think the book is weakest as history because I feel that it relies too much of interesting anecdotes and does not keep returning to its central theses to keep the narrative grounded. But this could be due to the fact that the book is written for more of a general audience. The book has lots of interesting stories and some good examinations of issues in conservation and ecology. As a native of the Park, I'm glad I read it and understand my home region much more than I did before.