"Beautifully written, impeccably researched, and told with the air of suspense that few writers can handle, Wastelands is a story I wish I had written." —John Grisham The once idyllic coastal plain of North Carolina is home to a closely knit, rural community that, for more than a generation, has battled the polluting practices of large-scale farming taking place in its own backyard. After years of frustration and futility, an impassioned cadre of local residents, led by a team of intrepid and dedicated lawyers, brought suit against one of the world’s most powerful companies—and, miraculously, they won. As vivid and fast-paced as a novel, Wastelands takes us into the heart of a legal battle over the future of America’s farmland, and into the lives of the people who found the courage to fight. With unparalleled entrée to the court­room, Corban Addison captures the stirring and unforgettable struggle to bring a modern-day monopoly to its knees, to force a once invincible corporation to change, and to preserve the rights—and restore the heritage—of a long-suffering community.