Customer Reviews

Defending Our Wildlife Heritage: The Life and Times of a Special Agent

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the third book in a series of memoirs by Terry "Tiny" Grosz, a six-foot four, 325-pound agent of the US Fish and Wildlife Service. As in the first two books, Grosz is a born raconteur with a lot of good stories to tell from his career as a game warden and wildlife agent.

In the first part of the book, Grosz lands a supervisory position in the Dakotas. He and his staff first tackle the problem of wetland easements. The US had paid farmers cash in the 1930s to protect wetlands on their lands in perpetuity (a protection taking the legal form of an "easement"). Unfortunately, as the economy improved, farmers began to drain and plow these wetlands, in violation of the easements. These easements had not been enforced until Grosz arrived, and it's interesting to see how he tackles the problem of enforcing a law that everyone breaks.

Then Grosz turns his attention to North Dakota's border with Canada. Large numbers of Americans hunt in Canada and apparently most of them violate Canadian and provincial laws. It's illegal to bring wildlife products into the US in violation of the laws of the land where they were taken, so Grosz has a field day catching violators. The best culprits are ingenious in finding places to hide their goods, but Grosz and his colleagues "fish" them out.

After this, Grosz gets a promotion to a desk job in DC, since he's complained too long about headquarters getting in the way of the field officers. He doesn't present the office politics well, and this part of the book drags. Then Grosz receives authority over US enforcement of the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which includes a two-month-long trip to southeast Asia. He's quite the ugly American, but his blunt styles seems to accomplish some things in Indonesia and the Philippines, while Hong Kong and Thailand run circles around him.

After the disappointment of his second book on ducks, ducks, and ducks, this book brings Grosz back to form. There's a nice variety of stories and he tells them well.

I never cease to be amazed at Terry Grosz's books. All the stories in his 3d book describing the inner workings of a U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Special Agent kept me interested and entertained. His stories were alive and action packed, they allowed me to cry, laugh and be amazed. Furthermore I learned a lot about wildlife (the best time to hunt ducks: Moon of the Duck) and how to preserve it (preserve the pot holes: Wetland Easement Wars). Keep up the great work Terry, can hardly wait to read your next book!

Defending Our Wildlife Heritage: The Life And Times Of A Special Agent is the autobiographical story of Terry Grosz, a man who worked and struggled for 32 years to protect wildlife in America. Poignant, emotion, filled with the travails of an endless struggle against human greed and carelessness, Defending Our Wildlife Heritage is a fascinating glimpse into the lives of those who labor so that future generations may share in the wonder of America's natural beauty and wildlife. Defending Our Wildlife Heritage is strongly recommended reading for nature enthusiasts, as well as environmental and wildlife protection activists.

I never would have thought this book would interests me as I don't hunt but it is so interesting. I am going to order his other book. They are very good and good gifts. Purchased at Amazon

some didnt care for this book, but i thought it was pretty good. very interesting, and educational. this is the first of T. Grosz books ive read and look forward to reading the rest.

My husband is a Game Warden and I bought this for him. He could not put it down! He said it was very well written and very interesting. He then passed it along to his fellow officers, recommending it to all of them.

The cover caught my eye, the title intrigued me, but the stories are like music to my soul.