it is now generally agreed that between 15,000 and 18,000 years ago around 40 to 90 tremendous deluges of almost inconceivable force and dimension
it is now generally agreed that between 15,000 and 18,000 years ago around 40 to 90 tremendous deluges of almost inconceivable force and dimension swept across large parts of the columbia river drainage. swollen by the floodwaters, the columbia grew to contain 10 times the flow of all the rivers in the world today and 60 times the flow of the amazon river. nearly 16,000 square miles were inundated to depths of hundreds of feet, the greatest documented floods known to have occurred in north america.
cataclysms on the columbia, written by john eliot allen, marjorie burns & scott burns, is a relentlessly fascinating account of the missoula floods — and geologist j harlen bretz, whose ideas proposing large-scale flooding to explain the eastern washington landscape were widely ridiculed by colleagues (until proven correct decades later). these ice age floods, almost unfathomable in scope, radically altered the geology of the pacific northwest. cataclysms offers a thorough history of the floods themselves and also detailed descriptions of their effects across localized areas spanning four states (montana, idaho, washington, oregon). with plenty of explanatory photographs, maps, and charts, the book is essential for understanding the region's geologic history.
appendix c, comparing the energies of different catastrophes is mind-boggling: the combined energy of the missoula floods (as measured in both tnt equivalence and ergs) is nearly twice as much as the asteroid that extinguished life 66 million years ago!...more
expanding the infographical premise of their first book, portlandness, geography professors hunter shobe and david banis' new work, upper left citiesexpanding the infographical premise of their first book, portlandness, geography professors hunter shobe and david banis' new work, upper left cities (written with zuriel van belle), compares, contrasts, and connects seattle, portland, and san francisco. as with their first cultural atlas, upper left cities combines storytelling and graphic maps, this time to offer snapshots of all three cities, as well as the region as a whole.
covering everything from neighborhoods and demographics to bridges, alleys, and graveyards; local fauna, transit, and natural disasters to voting trends, jazz clubs, and homeless encampments; gas prices, covid, and cannabis to beer, video games, and graffiti (and so, so much more), upper left cities is not only an absolute visual delight, but also a relentlessly fascinating portrait of three separate cities, sometimes similar, sometimes altogether dissimilar. though the infographic maps were each gorgeously composed, banis and shobe's essayistic writing is equally alluring, as it so effortlessly infuses the informative with a hearty dose of personality and humor.
there are so many things that make the left coast the best coast, not least having hunter shobe and david banis colorfully quantify the myriad reasons why!...more
there had been nothing like this in the history of the world or a scene like this in this history of world literature. why not write it? why not tr
there had been nothing like this in the history of the world or a scene like this in this history of world literature. why not write it? why not try to imagine a better world through fiction? why not invent a new literary genre to imagine that better world? why not invent pulp utopian detective environmentalist fantasy naked class conscious, socialist neo-realism polemical quality lit metafiction?
his entertaining 14th book, the great birthright: an oregon novel, marks matt love's first foray into fiction. self-described as "a work of pseudo pulp historical environmental detective socialist metafiction" or "a quasi pulp fiction historical polemical class-warfare thriller" or a "supposedly pulp historical detective work of 90-percent real-life environmental marxist crime fiction" or "a pulp environmental historical crime regional revenge thriller" or "an ersatz oregon-centric historical conservation-themed political playback thriller that no one's going to read!" or an "ostensibly pulp historical detective novel [come] quasi historical inspirational utopian egalitarian fantasy fiction" or "so-called romance documentary edward abbeyesque fiction," the great birthright melds all of the elements that have long made matt love's non-fiction writings so ardent, educational, and rousing.
as has been his career-spanning ethos, love celebrates "the great birthright" that is every oregonian's "free and uninterrupted use" of our public beaches. imagining a grave, capitalistic, and not altogether fictional threat to oregon's beaches, the great birthright unfurls into a detective thriller where a pair of unlikely heroes (the author himself and the grandson of governor oswald west) battle the pernicious forces of greed, entitlement, and unfettered commercialism in an attempt to sustain the public-interest efforts spearheaded by some of the state's most revered figures. with all of the iconoclasm, probity, unabashedness, and biting humor that characterize his nonfiction, love draws both a figurative and literal line in the sand, entreating his fellow oregonians to never yield in their fight to protect what might well be the beaver state's most enduring (and forever threatened) heritage.
...what oregon truly needs to do is reaffirm its allegiance to the ideals of oswald west's 1913 open beaches act and the 1967 beach bill. consecrate the bond again, publicly.
what better occasion than friday, july 7, 2017, the 50th anniversary of the beach bill?
i propose here that on july 7, 2017 every oregonian who cares about the great birthright skip work, chores and television and celebrate on beaches all along the oregon coast with friends, family, partners, dogs and perfectly weird strangers. go kesey on the sand! make it 100,000 strong. build forts and fires. bring rainier and wine and marijuana edibles and guitars. make it the greatest oregon public gathering since portland celebrated the blazers winning their only nba championship. let the world know what our free beaches mean to us.
in his 2003 biography of famed cartographer gerardus mercator, mercator: the man who mapped the planet, british travel writer and geographer nicholas in his 2003 biography of famed cartographer gerardus mercator, mercator: the man who mapped the planet, british travel writer and geographer nicholas crane remarked, "maps codify the miracle of existence." with their thorough and endlessly fascinating new book, portlandness: a cultural atlas, portland state university professors david banis and hunter shobe go well beyond mere systematic arrangement and existential marvel to offer infographic map-based glimpses of the rose city as it has never been seen before.
as the authors write in the book’s preface, "this atlas is an effort to use cartography to facilitate social understanding among different groups of people. a cultural atlas provides people with a new cartography, a new way of understanding places… reveal[ing] previously hidden constellations of social relations." portlandness had its genesis nearly a decade ago and the finished project includes the contributions of more than 40 people and the involvement of over 100 others.
even the most cursory glance at portlandness reveals a stunning collection of infographic maps both richly conceived and colorfully executed. covering an impressive range of topics (divided into seven broad subject areas: urban landscapes, the once and future city, wildness, views of the city, social relations, food and drink, and popular culture), portlandness is, at once, a singular and expertly presented collection of data, a multifaceted historical, geographical, demographical, environmental, social, and cultural look at the state’s largest city, and a static portrait of an evolving region’s present moment.
banis and shobe delve into the profound and the playful, the important and the inconsequential. with over 150 maps, portlandness takes up the obvious, the arcane, and the myriad intersections that connect the two, exploring aspects of the city as diverse as bridges, sidewalks, billboards, stop sign adornments, strip clubs, street name origins, annexations, ethnic backgrounds, haunted places, trees, rainfall, waterways, chickens, coyotes, bees, population densities, sounds, smells, emotions, psychogeography, surveillance, green spaces, homelessness, gentrification, urban renewal, street art, murals, diversity, brunch wait times, beer, coffee, farmer’s markets, food mirages, income inequality, gaming, comics, art galleries, festivals, film settings, musicians, and soccer – to name but a few handfuls.
compelling as these varied maps are, the explanatory introductions that accompany each entry provide necessary context and are often as interesting as the infographics themselves. banis and shobe, equally adept at the written word as they are at visual mapmaking, lend verve, personality, and a unique sensibility to their subjects.
"this atlas is not intended to be comprehensive in any way. Rather, it is a collection of stories. like any other place, portland means many different things to many different people." portlandness goes a long way to capture the diversity of meanings that portland may hold for its dwellers – whether long time denizen or recent transplant. offering a wealth of interpretive (and interpretable) data sets beautifully conveyed, the book provides a smart, inventive, and visually stunning lens through which to view our beloved city. quantifying and synthesizing so many disparate metrics into a coherent narrative must surely have been an arduous endeavor, yet banis and shobe’s cultural atlas is an extraordinary accomplishment – one that comes across as much as a labor of love as it does the fruition of an urban geographer’s extracurricular daydream.
holding a copy of portlandness makes any book review superfluous, as simply flipping through a few pages makes its obvious appeal quite evident. an unparalleled feat of cultural cartography and map-based storytelling, portlandness is a celebration of – and an indispensible look at – the many riches that continue to make portland an inimitable convergence of distinction, paradox, and flux....more
a well-written, often riveting account of mount st. helens before, during, and after its famed 1980 reawakening, steve olson's eruption delves into tha well-written, often riveting account of mount st. helens before, during, and after its famed 1980 reawakening, steve olson's eruption delves into the weeks of uncertainty that preceded and followed the mountain's explosion, framing the monumental event in the context of the timber industry, pacific northwest politics, the history of the forest service, and ongoing conservation efforts. in addition to chronicling the blast, avalanche, flooding, and ashfall that devastated the region and took the lives of 57 people, eruption also considers the volcano's legacy and the scientific developments of the last 35 years.
like all great popular science books, eruption offers insight not only into its subject, but also a variety of ancillary ones that lend the story greater depth, color, and perspective. with an extensive bibliography, it's evident olson did considerable research in preparation for the book. for those interested in mount st. helens specifically, or volcanology in general, eruption offers a personal, political, and polyphonic account of a remarkable natural disaster that continues to shape the region decades later.
the eruption of mount st. helens marked the dividing line between the old northwest and the new, between the decline of the countryside and the rise of the cities, between an economy based on resources and one based on ideas. the stories of the people who were around the mountain when it exploded reflect this turning point, as if caught in an unexpected snapshot.
journey was everything and the more difficult it became the more i felt that i was living the life i wanted.
rinker buck's the oregon trail is a tr
journey was everything and the more difficult it became the more i felt that i was living the life i wanted.
rinker buck's the oregon trail is a travelogue par excellence. the first to make a covered wagon trek of the oregon trail in over a century, rinker and his brother, nick (and his dog olive oyl), spent several months ambling across the west. following the original route in their schuttler wagon from missouri to oregon, the bucks overland journey is a remarkable tale of perseverance, brotherhood, and recapturing the mythologized glory of the pioneer days in the mid-1840s.
buck's book offers more than a mere chronicle of their trip, however, steeped as it is in the history of wagoneering, mule skinning, and all things trail-related. buck enlivens his narrative with reflections on american culture, generosity encountered along the trail, his father, and his relationship with his trailhand brother. the banter between buck and nick is endlessly entertaining, especially given how different each of them is in personality and temperament. the oregon trail is part adventure story, part history lesson, and part personal saga - combining to form a marvelous, engaging, and lively work that makes you wish you were sauntering alongside the wagon as it traversed the great western expanse.
i began to think of my peter schuttler as a plodding social observatory, and the contradiction of being able to see the modern world more clearly from the vantage of a nineteenth-century wagon appealed to me. seeing america slowly was, in a way, like eating slow food - i wasn't covering much ground in a single day, but i was digesting a lot more.
late in his newest book, a nice piece of astoria, matt love recounts moving to the oregon coast some 18 years ago (see also: gimme refuge: the educlate in his newest book, a nice piece of astoria, matt love recounts moving to the oregon coast some 18 years ago (see also: gimme refuge: the education of a caretaker) as "perhaps the boldest decision of my life... a last ditch effort to become an oregonian of merit." having authored/edited 13 books about oregon, received the stewart h. holbrook literary legacy award ("in recognition of significant contributions that have enriched oregon’s literary community"), and founded a press (nestucca spit) that distributes its books solely through independent bookstores, its own website, and live events (logging about a half million miles to and from some 600 readings around the state), it's well evident love's so-called "last ditch effort" has paid off handsomely - most of all for those of us who love and cherish all things oregonian.
much as he did in 2009's super sunday in newport: notes from my first year in town, love has penned a narrative guide to his new home, with all of the requisite wit, humor, insight, rain worship, beach adoration, rock allusions, political asides, and iconoclasm one has come to expect in his writing. a nice piece of astoria is composed mostly of short vignettes (and myriad metaphors) on a variety of astoria-related subjects (and some non-germane ones as well) - covering everything from the history and founding of the port city to the current and ever-encroaching gentrification and ensuing hipsterdom.
if you haven't yet read any of matt love's books (and woe unto you, if you indeed have not), you'll find his passion for all things oregon utterly invigorating. as he continues to mine the beaver state for every last tellable story, we'll go on enjoying the fruits of his labor. matt love is the storyteller oregon deserves and it's likely she doesn't have a more tireless advocate and champion.
whenever i stroll the riverfront and see the decaying pilings bobble and tilt with the tides, the derelict piers with blackberries growing out of them, and inexplicable abandoned contraptions rusting like fine sculpture, astoria feels so wonderfully ancient, perpetually and unpretentiously quaint, like it will never fully modernize, because modernization is impossible. but on that same walk, i might also encounter a newcomer like myself, perhaps taking polaroid photographs of the oldness or writing a novel in longhand describing the newness, both artists trying to fathom and build upon what is going on here.
with each subsequent book, oregon author matt love refines his craft ever more fully - honing an innate storytelling talent and developing his commandwith each subsequent book, oregon author matt love refines his craft ever more fully - honing an innate storytelling talent and developing his command of language and rhythm. rose city heist, a work quite unlike any of its predecessors, may well be his finest outing yet (it's certainly his most spectacular). with his trademark wit, iconoclasm, and fervent rock and roll sensibilities, love unfurls the true tale of his involvement in the biggest jewelry theft in portland history.
set in the summer of 1993, when "there wasn't a drop of earnestness in portland," rose city heist is the story of love and his german friend philipp kohlermann ("an amusing, engaging, adventuresome, magnanimous and merciful jewelry salesman whose only mistake was to trust me for one second") - and how a half-million dollars worth of stolen jewelry led to their being cast as the lead suspects in an fbi investigation. with love finally free to offer his account of that fateful (and nearly felonious) summer, he dishes up a thrilling and rollicking recollection of events replete with ample servings of both galaga and gravy. rose city heist is exuberant and unrestrained - two qualities that make love's already singular style all the more animate and engrossing.
i stood up to leave. he stood up. i tried to get a read on him. forget it; i might as well have read a medical dictionary for pleasure or a jonathan franzen novel for insight into the normal human condition.
"blending reportage, ethnography, meditation, history, art and photojournalism, driftwood forts of the oregon coast also serves as a useful, all-ages "blending reportage, ethnography, meditation, history, art and photojournalism, driftwood forts of the oregon coast also serves as a useful, all-ages and entertaining guide on how to build a driftwood fort."
indeed - but all that and more. james herman's charming book is, too, a paean, encomium, petition, homage, offering, and benediction. for anyone whom the oregon coast has proven to be more than something merely espied from a passenger-side window, driftwood forts are a joyous and welcomed sight upon the sands. herman does a magnificent job of capturing and conveying the unique essence and multifunctional splendor of these sylvan standouts.
driftwood forts of the oregon coast, long after it inevitably goes out of print, will undoubtedly become the sought-after and definitive handbook to these temporal constructs. herman's book beckons and allures the reader to make merry along the wrack line. like an irresistible entreaty, you are encouraged to conjure a driftwood fort of your own and (re)assemble the leavings of time into your very own whatever-the-hell-you-want-it-to-be. it's like tinkertoys of, by, and for the tempest-tossed. let herman's book be your guide - your citadel of the spirit awaits construction.
while on the coast, one is constantly reminded of time's effect on their surroundings. where ravaged beach house shingles shake and rust collects in front of your own eyes, the tides pull in and out leaving scattered remnants of their course. on shore, these structures can stand the test of days, weeks and months until they are blown down or recommissioned by the next anonymous artist. they have credence only because they are built ti last that amount of time.
2014 marks the centennial of william stafford's birth. if you happen to live anywhere near the pacific northwest, you've undoubtedly noticed that this2014 marks the centennial of william stafford's birth. if you happen to live anywhere near the pacific northwest, you've undoubtedly noticed that this occasion has been marked by considerable fanfare and a number of high profile events. a prolific and dedicated writer (however late to the game - publishing his first collection at the age of 46), stafford was beloved and seemingly universally-praised by everyone he encountered. ask me is a stunning and stirring collection featuring 100 of stafford's poems and serves as a fantastic introduction to the breadth and depth of the late poet's remarkable work.
ask me
some time when the river is ice ask me mistakes i have made. ask me whether what i have done is my life. others have come in their slow way into my thought, and some have tried to help or to hurt: ask me what difference their strongest love or hate has made.
i will listen to what you say. you and i can turn and look at the silent river and wait. we know the current is there, hidden; and there are comings and goings from miles away that hold the stillness exactly before us. what the river says, that is what i say.
~
a ritual to read to each other
if you don't know the kind of person i am and i don't know the kind of person you are a pattern that others made may prevail in the world and following the wrong god home we may miss our star.
for there is many a small betrayal in the mind, a shrug that lets the fragile sequence break sending with shouts the horrible errors of childhood storming out to play through the broken dyke.
and as elephants parade holding each elephant's tail, but if one wanders the circus won't find the park, i call it cruel and maybe the root of all cruelty to know what occurs but not recognize the fact.
and so i appeal to a voice, to something shadowy, a remote important region in all who talk: though we could fool each other, we should consider - lest the parade of our mutual life get lost in the dark.
for it is important that awake people be awake, or a breaking line may discourage them back to sleep; the signals we give - yes or no, or maybe - should be clear: the darkness around us is deep.
~
"i must be willingly fallible to deserve a place in the realm where miracles happen."
i will try to write the greatest book on rain in the history of oregon literature, yet it might go unpublished except for the fact that i'm a publi
i will try to write the greatest book on rain in the history of oregon literature, yet it might go unpublished except for the fact that i'm a publisher and will publish it as i see fit. rain made me do it. some portland critics who grew up in the corn of the midwest will dismiss this book as "uneven." i feel sorry for their ignorance and hope they unveil it by using the term "uneven." they traveled all that way on the third incarnation of the oregon trail and still don't get it. rain is uneven and that casts the spell. rain has never fallen the same way twice and i liken its varied composition to snowflakes, fingerprints and lips. rain virtually never falls straight to the ground on the oregon coast. this book will reflect those signature uneven properties. you want uniformity, write about the sun.
of walking in rain is the latest literary output from the one-man stone oregon publishing empire that is matt love. his devotion to and celebration of all things beaver state is often infectious (and perhaps ought to be classified as a contagion). his newest work, a stylistic torrent, is a paean to oregon's "most famous cultural asset" - rain. as he's wont to do in nearly all of his books, love, amidst the deluge of rain-related reflections, recollections, and rants, offers a veritable flood of opinions on politicians, education & teaching, football, and sex, incorporating no shortage of literary and lyrical allusions to his favorite singers, songs, and scribes (especially ken kesey).
written over three (very) rainy months on the oregon coast, of walking in rain is more than mere encomium - it is also entreaty, expression of ardor, exercise in creativity, and escapade into an assortment of rain-related hijinks. there is a candor and unabashed character to love's writing that, agree or not, leave's one sharing in his visceral and enviable joy. should our governor ever see fit to bestow upon our state a "raconteur laureate," matt love may well be the oregonian best suited to the task.
you go ali against foreman. you cover up and go rope-a-dope. rain will exhaust itself and then you spring from a sweaty clench, fling your arms open and... not punch back.
you never box rain. it is never your opponent. knowing that is the only way to win.
when, not if. it has been over 300 years since the pacific northwest last endured a megaquake (in 1700, the region was struck by a temblor sixty timeswhen, not if. it has been over 300 years since the pacific northwest last endured a megaquake (in 1700, the region was struck by a temblor sixty times more powerful than the one that devastated san francisco in 1906). with the cascadia subduction zone (stretching from northern california into british columbia) (over)due for a magnitude 9 quake or greater, big cities and small towns up and down the pacific coast are facing a catastrophic threat of nearly inconceivable proportions.
"the 'big one' in the pacific northwest has the potential to be the mostly costly and destructive disaster in the history of the united states, both in terms of loss of life and economic damage. the long term economic impact could alter our entire economy," said james lee witt, former director of fema.
sandi doughton's full rip 9.0 is an enlightening (if not, at times, horrifying) look at the seismological threat facing the northwest. cities like vancouver, seattle, and portland will likely suffer epic and unparalleled destruction when the shaking begins, while coastal destination towns (including seaside, cannon beach, and newport) face obliteration altogether when the inevitable tsunamis follow not long after. with casualties expected to reach into the tens of thousands, it will likely dwarf the destruction left in the wake of hurricane katrina.
full rip 9.0 is rich in both history and science, offering an accessible, well-researched look into the looming threat of a pacific northwest megaquake. sandi doughton, a science reporter for the seattle times, provides background on the region's geology, the scientists instrumental in uncovering previous seismological activity, and the woefully unprepared state of local governments, businesses, schools, and individuals to anticipate and mitigate the impending danger. fascinating, frightening, and even a touch infuriating (given the unpardonable inattention of public officials), doughton's important book is lively and well-written.
some fifty miles east southeast of portland lies the highest peak in the state of oregon: mount hood, a 700,000 year old stratovolcano. the fourth talsome fifty miles east southeast of portland lies the highest peak in the state of oregon: mount hood, a 700,000 year old stratovolcano. the fourth tallest in the cascade range (some 11,240 feet high), mt. hood is currently rated fourth by the us geological survey (usgs) in terms of "size and potential damage of an eruption." there is, of course, far more to hood than its latent explosive power, as jon bell's intriguing book on mount hood: a biography of oregon's perilous peak makes abundantly clear.
light on the science and heavy on the personal anecdote, bell's often charming book explores nearly every facet the mountain has to offer. on mount hood's brief chapters cover everything from the peak's geological history, its glaciers, the storied timberline lodge, its pronounced effects on local weather, the history of its early summits, and details about its many climbing fatalities (nearly 140 since records have been kept), amongst other topics. bell also dispels some of the long-held myths regarding mt. hood, most notably that portland's drinking water is fed by the mountain's glacial runoff (in fact, none of the city's drinking water originates on the mountain- nearly all of it comes from the nearby bull run watershed).
jon bell's affection for the mountain is rather evident, and his enthusiasm for its wonder and beauty is easily shared. on mount hood is a great general interest book on one of oregon's most recognizable (and influential) landmarks. from its foothills to the timberline to its snow-capped summit, bell provides an interesting first-hand glimpse of hood's many striking characteristics.
whether hiking or climbing or skiing or camping on it, gazing longingly at it from an office window, sipping a pale ale with its countenance on the label, enduring the rain it wrings from the air, following a story about climbers lost on it or massive trees about to be cut on it, hood has a story that inevitably becomes a part of your own. the mountain's presence is undeniable and iconic, always there, whether you can see it or not. it is a paragon of alpine beauty, but also in its entirety much more than that. mount hood is sunshine and storms, forests and fauna; it is snow, ice, and water; it is history and tragedy, mystery and glory.
in the summer of 1970, out on the central oregon coast, paul newman and company filmed a cinematic adaptation of ken kesey's epic 1964 novel, sometimein the summer of 1970, out on the central oregon coast, paul newman and company filmed a cinematic adaptation of ken kesey's epic 1964 novel, sometimes a great notion. matt love's new book (and the final installment in his newport trilogy), sometimes a great movie, chronicles the film's production with an array of first-person accounts, photographs, and newspaper clippings of the time. a large portion of the book is composed of these local stories wherein coastal residents recall their interactions with actors and crew alike, providing a very personal, behind-the-scenes glimpse into the effects of moviemaking on a community.
as a narrative thread woven throughout the book, love attempts to track down corroborating evidence of the now-legendary story regarding paul newman (apparently never without a can of olympia beer), a chainsaw, and the eventually fate of a innocent pool table. sometimes a great movie, in turn, focuses not only on the production process of the film, but also upon kesey and his masterful book, the creative differences that led to the firing of the movie's original director, the actors and actresses themselves, the logistics of finding a suitable filming location, the film's critical reception, as well as its current commercial status (languishing, with no plans for a dvd release, as one of many films deserving to be brought back into print).
kesey's novel, of course, far surpasses in scope, storytelling, and overall magnificence the film adaptation, but the movie does indeed feature moments of real excellence. it is far from a perfect piece of cinema and many of its misfires are given careful consideration by love. his book is as much a celebration of the novel and its legacy as it is a document of that singular 1970 summer in lincoln county. many of sometimes a great movie's anecdotes are the result of dedicated research, serendipity, and the willingness of love's interviewees to recall events now over four decades old.
matt love's commitment to unearthing and sharing forgotten, neglected, and seldom-told tales of beaver state history never fails to inspire. his love for all things oregon is evident in so much of his writing, and his curiosity and passion to find her next intriguing story are quite commendable. sometimes a great movie is a fitting tribute to a decent film based on a better book, and lovers of cinema, kesey, and oregon history will find much to cherish. it will be all the more successful if it compels even a few people to actually (and finally) read the brilliant novel that made it all possible.
along the western slopes of the oregon coastal range... come look: the hysterical crashing of cultural tributaries as they merge into the hollywood people filming the great oregon novel in the very place the novel was set...
matt love may well be the most prolific chronicler of oregon tales since the great stewart holbrook more than half a century ago. not only is his passmatt love may well be the most prolific chronicler of oregon tales since the great stewart holbrook more than half a century ago. not only is his passion for the beaver state well evident in every sentence he composes, his writing also inspires current and former oregonians alike with a sense of place, a love of history, and a duty to preserve the state's unique heritage.
love and the green lady is the second volume in love's newport trilogy (the first being super sunday in newport, and focuses solely on the yaquina bay bridge. designed by conde mccullough (whom also designed nearly two dozen other oregon bridges from astoria in the north to gold beach in the south) and completed in 1936, the yaquina bay bridge is a shining example of the new deal-era infrastructure projects that helped stabilize a devastated economy and put unemployed people back to work. love's book focuses on all aspects of the bridge, including its history and legacy, its unique aesthetic traits, as well as the politics of the bridge's construction (even invoking that much-maligned s-word: socialism!). love includes anecdotal tales from local newport residents as well as writings from his high school students. with over 100 photographs, most taken by love himself, love and the green lady is the definitive biography of this stunning bridge.
as with all of matt love's writing, his freewheeling style enriches an already fascinating narrative. with ample sex, rock n roll allusions, candid political asides, and playful, witty humor, it is clear love is an engaging storyteller. matt love has come to be the unofficial biographer of all things oregon, or, at the very least, the literary ambassador of all things stone oregon.
today, the idea of the state building a beautiful bridge like the green lady seems as remote as the days when american presidents owned slaves and coupled with them. perhaps oregon's inability to construct, let alone conceive, another public works project as magnificent compelled me to produce this little book as an homage, a historical reminder, a rejoinder, a spark, a celebration, a meditation, a thank you, a love letter and a present to the green lady on her seventy-fifth birthday.
as fascinating as it is alarming, cascadia's fault tells the story of the cascadia subduction zone, a geologically and seismologically active area stras fascinating as it is alarming, cascadia's fault tells the story of the cascadia subduction zone, a geologically and seismologically active area stretching from northern california into british columbia. as the juan de fuca tectonic plate continues its eastward slip beneath the north american plate, the convergence will eventually lead to disaster for the major cities and coastal towns of the pacific northwest. as an active fault zone that has spurred numerous megathrust earthquakes over many millennia, it is only a matter of time before the plates unlock themselves once again in a series of catastrophic temblors.
for the past twenty-five years, canadian journalist jerry thompson has been tracking the scientific advancements in the earthquake geology of the pacific northwest. cascadia's fault, despite its somewhat misleading subtitle, focuses mostly on the ever-evolving developments in understanding the subduction zone's history and future. as plate tectonics began to surplant the once-dominant theory of continental drift, it became ever more evident that the cascadia subduction zone not only was able of producing powerful earthquakes, but it had, in fact, been doing so for thousands of years. cascadia's fault recounts the major advancements in the recent science relating to the area, and foretells of a day when another major earthquake (perhaps a 9 or 9.5 magnitude) will strike again. victoria, vancouver, seattle, portland, sacramento, and towns in between are likely to suffer cataclysmic damage during and after the inevitable quake, and coastal communities will be ravaged and destroyed from the ensuing tsunamis (predicted to reach heights of perhaps one hundred feet).
for perspective and to help clarify the science, thompson includes chapters on other recently devastating earthquakes and their resulting tsunamis from around the pacific ring of fire, including the march 2011 9.0 magnitude tōhoku quake in japan, the christchurch earthquake a month earlier, the 8.8 chilean temblor in 2010, and the 9.3 sumatran quake in december 2004. thompson reiterates the need for better earthquake and tsunami preparedness for the entire pacific northwest region, as preparation, thus far, has been woefully inadequate for a disaster as epic as this one will likely be. in a final chapter entitled, "cascadia's fault: day of reckoning," thompson lays bare, in graphic and horrifying detail, likely real-time scenarios of what may happen when the "big one" finally hits the pnw (collapsing bridges and buildings, rampant fires, ruptured water and gas lines, crippled infrastructure, deadly rock and mudslides, overwhelmed and unresponsive emergency services, etc.).
cascadia's fault is an obviously well-researched book, and it is clear that thompson takes the subject seriously (especially as a resident of the pacific northwest himself). as predictive modeling is currently unable to forecast earthquakes with any effective degree of accuracy, geologists and seismologists continue on with their research (as many state and local governments all but ignore the inevitability of what's to come). it appears a cascadian megathrust earthquake likely appears every 500 years or so, and with the last major recorded event having occurred in january of 1700, the next one could, quite literally, arrive anytime between this evening and the next couple of hundred years. if there is a single point that thompson seems to drive home (with the lessons and consequences of the aforementioned earthquakes still so painfully apparent), it's simply that greater preparedness will not only save countless lives, but also mitigate the nearly inconceivable destruction that draws nearer every day.
benjamin percy's debut novel the wilding quickly carves a captivating and suspenseful story, yet seems to stumble somewhere amidst its climax and dénobenjamin percy's debut novel the wilding quickly carves a captivating and suspenseful story, yet seems to stumble somewhere amidst its climax and dénouement. what begins as an intriguing tale with many narrative threads, concludes in a somewhat hasty, contrived manner. whereas i found myself nearly enraptured by the book early on, i was ultimately disappointed by the work as a whole. characters that percy undoubtedly worked hard to establish never seem to develop fully and are finally left to flounder in a way seemingly unlikely given the story's trajectory. narrative threads are either left unresolved or dissolve into a perfunctory end.
parts of the wilding do indeed illustrate percy's writing talent, especially his ability to capture and convey the essence of place (the story is set in central oregon). percy concerns himself with the ongoing politics of conservation and development, especially pertinent given the story's setting. as well, the hardships endured by a returning iraq war veteran figure prominently into the plot. though the novel, initially, shows promise in weaving these seemingly disparate elements together, they never fully coalesce in any believable way. the wilding establishes many conflicts, yet fails to explore them beyond a cursory consideration. this novel may have benefited from an extra hundred pages in which percy could have expanded on the characters and their respective dramas. the wilding has its thrilling moments, yet despite its long trek into the wilderness, it failed to save enough energy for the necessary trip back out....more
the great barry lopez composes prose as rich and sustaining as the landscapes he so effortlessly considers. crossing open ground collects fourteen essthe great barry lopez composes prose as rich and sustaining as the landscapes he so effortlessly considers. crossing open ground collects fourteen essays, written during the late 1970s and early to mid 1980s, that were printed previously in a wide array of publications including harper's, outside, wilderness, orion nature quarterly, and notre dame magazine. as one of our eminent nature writers, lopez travels throughout the west to explore the great abundance and diversity of some of our nation's most pristine settings. lopez's writing seamlessly blends science, philosophy, and history in a first-person narrative that is as beautifully crafted as it is insightful and inspiring.
the essays contained within crossing open ground vary greatly in theme and subject, though lopez's abiding humility before the brilliance of the natural world is evident throughout. among the collection's strongest pieces are "a presentation of whales" (about the mass beaching of 41 sperm whales on the oregon coast in 1979), "the passing wisdom of birds" (recalling the senseless mass destruction cortés wrought upon the resplendent avian populations of tenochtitlan in 1520), "grown men" (a touching tribute to three mentor-like friends), "searching for ancestors" (about the vanished anasazi), "landscape and narrative" (regarding the intersection of storytelling and nature), and "a reflection on white geese" (about the large number of visiting bird populations on tule lake in northern california). without a single extraneous essay, crossing open ground aptly exemplifies lopez's literary proficiency and leaves the reader with a lasting sense of awe, wonder, and respect for the natural world.
as the anasazi had a complicated culture, so have we. we are takers of notes, measurers of stone, examiners of fragments in the dust. we search for order in chaos wherever we go. we worry over what is lost. in our best moments we remember to ask ourselves what it is we are doing, whom we are benefiting by these acts. one of the great dreams of man must be to find some place between the extremes of nature and civilization where it is possible to live without regret.
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beyond this- that the interior landscape is a metaphorical representation of the exterior landscape, that the truth reveals itself most fully not in dogma but in the paradox, irony, and contradictions that distinguish compelling narratives- beyond this there are only failures of imagination: reductionism in science; fundamentalism in religion; fascism in politics.
our national literatures should be important to us insofar as they sustain us with illumination and heal us. they can always do that so long as they are written with respect for both the source and the reader, and with an understanding of why the human heart and the land have been brought together so regularly in human history.
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one learns a landscape finally not by knowing the name or identity of everything in it, but by perceiving the relationships in it- like that between the sparrow and the twig. the difference between the relationships and the elements is the same as that between written history and a catalog of events....more
robin cody's ricochet river generated some mild controversy earlier last decade when some parents of a local school district attempted to have the boorobin cody's ricochet river generated some mild controversy earlier last decade when some parents of a local school district attempted to have the book banned (on the spurious claims of age-inappropriate sexual themes & profanity). like many banned and censored works, ricochet river is a coming-of-age tale that narrates the requisite emotional awakening and sexual maturing of its teenage characters. set in 1960's calamus, a fictional oregon logging town near portland, the story follows three friends yearning for something greater than their small town could possibly offer. while parts of the book were not as well developed as they perhaps might have been, ricochet river does exude a certain charm (even if the ending was somewhat predictable). cody succeeds in capturing the essence of small town living, as well as the inevitable angst plaguing its young inhabitants. among the work's notable qualities are its vivid portrayal of the breathtaking cascadian landscape and the richness and depth cody lent the three main characters.
the third and final of don berry's "trask novels," to build a ship is the least developed of the three works. set mostly on the oregon coast (tillamoothe third and final of don berry's "trask novels," to build a ship is the least developed of the three works. set mostly on the oregon coast (tillamook bay) in the early 1850's, the story centers upon a small territorial settlement left stranded following the death of the man who served as their sole contact with the outside world. while many of the elements that made berry's first two novels so enjoyable are present, to build a ship suffers from an uninspired, predictable plot and lackluster narrative arc. the characters are thinly composed, especially when compared with elbridge trask and johnson monday from the first two books. to build a ship is not without its high points, and there is, indeed, much to like about the story, but it is not nearly as captivating and well crafted as its predecessors. it may simply be that with trask and moontrap berry exhausted the creative impulse that made those works seem so effortlessly fantastic. were it not for being the concluding volume in an otherwise exceptional trilogy of novels, perhaps to build a ship may have forever languished in obscurity.
to learn humility, a man must stand in the midst of the oregon forest....more
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