John McPhee

The narratives in this book are of journeys made in three wildernesses - on a coastal island, in a Western mountain range, and on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. The four men portrayed here have different relationships to their environment, and they encounter each other on mountain trails, in forests and rapids, sometimes with reserve, sometimes with friendliness, sometimes fighting hard across a philosophical divide.

Narratives About a Conservationist and Three of His Natural Enemies

Encounters with the Archdruid

Ashley Flitter

This was an entertaining and informative read. If you enjoy reading about topics surrounding environmentalism, then I'd definitely recommend this book. However, even if you don't really fancy yourself an environmentalist, the character studies in this book are enough to entertain anyone. Though environmentalism is the catalyst for the action in McPhee's narrative, the true value in the story is with the interesting characters. The four main characters often have an incredible duality to their nature, which on its own makes them fascinating. 

I also greatly enjoyed McPhee's descriptions of the natural terrains in which the narrative took place. From the Cascade Mountains to the dry plains of the Western US, he paints a compelling visual element to his narrative. By the end of the book I felt compelled to go see each of the places he described, if for no other reason that to see how each place had changed since the book's publication (the late 70's). 

Overall this is a work of creative non-fiction that I'd highly recommend to anyone.

Encounters with the Archdruid Narratives About a Conservationist and Three of His Natural Enemies

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