A detailed look at the state's most terrifying and destructive disasters—photos included.Home to hundreds of faults, California leads the nation in frequency of earthquakes every year. And despite enduring their share of the natural disasters, residents still speculate over the inevitable "big one."More than three thousand people lost their lives during the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Long Beach's 1933 earthquake caused nearly $50 million in damages. And...

Mono Lake is one of the largest lakes in California, and Californians have been using it, enjoying it, and abusing it since nomadic northern Paiutes began hunting the lake’s vast bird populations. Controversy between environmentalists and the City of Los Angeles brought so much attention to Mono Lake in the late twentieth century that it became best known for its appearance on “Save Mono Lake” bumper stickers. This thoughtful study is the first book to explore the lake’s environmental and ...

Winner • Pulitzer Prize for HistoryWinner • Kirkus Prize for NonfictionFinalist • National Book Critics Circle Award (Nonfiction)A New York Times Notable Book of the YearNamed one of the Best Books of the Year by the Washington Post, NPR, Library Journal, and gCaptainBooklist Editors’ Choice (History)Longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for ExcellenceIn this “cri de coeur abou...

“Brilliant.” —The Washington Post Book World * “Magnificent.” —The Palm Beach Post * “Rich in history yet urgently relevant to current events.” —The New RepublicThe Everglades i****n southern Florida were once reviled as a liquid wasteland, and Americans dreamed of draining it. Now it is revered as a national treasure, and Americans have launched the largest environmental project in history to try to save it.

"A definitive history of bird conservation in America.” (Kirkus Reviews, starred)From the time the country was founded, early Americans assumed that the land’s natural resources were infinite, including its birds, which were zealously hunted for food, game, and fashion. With the rapid extinction of the passenger pigeon—a bird once so numerous that its flocks darkened the sky in flight—many realized actions needed to be taken if other birds...

**Best Books of the Month: Wall Street Journal, Kirkus ReviewsFrom the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Gulf, a sweeping cultural and natural history of the bald eagle in America.**The bald eagle is regal but fearless, a bird you’re not inclined to argue with. For centuries, Americans have celebrated it as “majestic” and “noble,” yet savaged the living bird behind their national symbol as a malicious predator of livestock and, falsely, a snatc...

A naturist and historian for the National Parks Service offers a lively history of the giant sequoias of California and the love of nature they inspired.Former park ranger William C. Tweed takes readers on a tour of some of the world's largest and oldest trees in a narrative that travels deep into the Sierra Nevada mountains, across the American West, and all the way to New Zealand. Along the way, he explores the American public's evolving relationship with sequoia...

Join Uncle John as he treks through every one of America’s National Parks!If you like the great outdoors, you’re going to love this book. We’re plunging into every national park, monument, site, and trail (more than 150 in all!) in true Uncle John fashion and uncovering some unique stories behind all of them. You’re sure to find hidden facets of each national park that you never imagined. Read about...* Yosemite’s firefall and why it came to a sudden end

Roger Tory Peterson's unique perspective on birding comes to life in these highly personal narratives. Here he relates his adventures during a lifetime of birding and traveling the world to observe and record nature. Though Peterson was widely known for his illustrations, this collection reminds us to reconsider his accomplishments as a photographer, for Peterson was nearly as passionate about photography as he was about painting. The essays and photographs included here were carefully sel...

This century has seen the costliest hurricanes in U.S. history—but who bears the brunt of these monster storms?Consider this: Five of the most expensive hurricanes in history have made landfall since 2005: Katrina ($160 billion), Ike ($40 billion), Sandy ($72 billion), Harvey ($125 billion), and Maria ($90 billion). With more property than ever in harm's way, and the planet and oceans warming dangerously, it won't be long before we see a $250 billion hurricane. Why?...

Anders Halverson provides an exhaustively researched and grippingly rendered account of the rainbow trout and why it has become the most commonly stocked and controversial freshwater fish in the United States. Discovered in the remote waters of northern California, rainbow trout have been artificially propagated and distributed for more than 130 years by government officials eager to present Americans with an opportunity to get back to nature by going fishing. Proudly dubbed "an entirely s...

In homage to America's National Parks and their iconic art posters, this volume features new artwork for seventy-five parks and monuments across all fifty states."In this sepia-tinged homage" to the iconic National Parks posters "modern artists contribute dazzling new graphics" ( Entertainment Weekly).From 1935 to 1943, the WPA's Federal Art Project hired American artist to create posters celebrating the National Parks Service. The icon See America p...