Review Detail

I picked up John Muir: America's First Environmentalist, because I have always had a deep appreciation for the natural world and its preservation. I knew that Muir had founded the Sierra Club and that there was a backcountry trail near Yosemite named after him, but beyond that I had not explored much further into his life. I am sad now about what I didn't know!

This biography details his early life to his last days, and brings to life the impact he had on the shaping of our nation's national parks and environmental policy, not to mention the great philosophical mark Muir made on how we as a people view our relationship to nature. As I read his story, I was excited and intrigued by his life and his passions, and surprised by some things I didn't realize about him at all, including the fact that he was an incredibly intelligent man and inventor. The pull of the natural world around him drove him to become an unforgotten name, and his life should be an inspiration and study to all children and adults.