New Books About the Outdoors

By now, the Thanksgiving turkey is just a fading memory, which means we’re in the heart of the Christmas shopping season. I always like books for Christmas gifts, and so here are a few recently sent out for review.

“Big Burn,” by Timothy Egan, published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
In 1910, the largest forest fire in this country’s history swept across the northwest, destroying forests in Montana, Idaho and Washington.

Though the fires took place almost a century ago, the events leading to the fire and its aftermath continue to echo. The book explores the actions of America’s conservation president, Theodore Roosevelt, his close friendship with Gifford Pinchot, the first Chief of the Forest Service, and their battles with the big corporations used to exploiting natural resources. The fires took place after Roosevelt left office, but Roosevelt’s unsuccessful run for the 1912 presidential election spurred legislation that shaped the national forests for the next century.

We also meet some heroes of the fledgling forest service, including Ed Pulaski, who invented the ubiquitous forest firefighting hand tool—and no, he never made any money with it either.

It’s a page-turner with compelling stories of heroism, sacrifice, and political corruption. If you really want to understand today’s forest controversies, you’d be well advised to start with “Big Burn.”

“The Dogged and the Damned,” by Roland Cheek, published by Skyline Publishing.
Roland Cheek is a Montana writer. His book, “The Dogged and the Damned” is a novel based on actual events. It tells the story of Michael Buna, a Butte High School football star and decorated soldier hospitalized in a VA mental hospital in Roseburg, Oregon in the years following WWII. Michael is haunted by memories of the Pacific islands where he fought. In today’s terminology, he has PTSD.

Michael eventually walks away from the hospital and starts to live off the land, including breaking into seasonal homes, causing a widespread panic and a manhunt by a local sheriff. It’s a fascinating tale of recovery and setbacks, along with woods lore.
The author grew up in the Roseburg area at the time of the actual events and was even once jailed by the same sheriff who pursued Michael.

“Barebow! An Archer’s Fair-Chase taking of North America’s Big-Game 29,” by Dennis Dunn, published by Documentary Media.

We often hear about grand slams, especially the Grand Slam of North American Wild Sheep. Getting a grand slam involves a lot: skill, dedication, time and a lot of money. If getting a grand slam is an achievement, contemplate, if you will, taking all 29 of North America’s big game animals—with a bow. I’m not qualified to say what additional challenges it entails, but the author makes it clear that whether he’s used traditional archery equipment or compound bows, he doesn’t use sights with his equipment.

If the prospect of taking all of North America’s big game animals seems daunting, it’s somehow fitting that the book about it is also daunting. It’s a big coffee table book, over 500 double-size pages and weighing in at a hefty nine pounds. I’ve met the author and he jokes about people suggesting, “Heck, put legs on it and use it as a coffee table.” It’s that big. It’s also expensive, at $95, though at just over a buck a pound, you get your money’s worth. In any event, I think it’s a book that fanatic archery hunters, or hunters who dream of an ultimate hunting achievement, would love.
“From Boys to Men of Heart; Hunting as Rite of Passage,” by Randall L. Eaton, published by OWLink Media.

I mentioned this book in last week’s Thanksgiving column. Eaton is a behavioral scientist who has studied hunting and its place in human culture for many years. In this book he explores hunting and, in particular, its role in the growth and maturation of adolescent males.

Make no mistake; this book is not light reading. It’s an academic study, full of notes, bibliography and appendixes. It’s important, however, if you really want to understand why hunting means so much to so many of us.