Floods of Fortune [Hardcover]

Michael Goulding (Author), Nigel J. H. Smith (Author), Dennis Mahar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1995 | ISBN-10: 0231104200 | ISBN-13: 978-0231104203 0

As the depredation of the planet's greatest storehouse of biodiversity-the Amazon region-continues apace, it is vitally important to understand the implications of the immense devastation the area has undergone. Describing the stunning diversity of plant an animal life found in and along the rivers, and showing how this wealth is being plundered, Floods of Fortune offers the first holistic view of the conservation drama unfolding in the Amazonian floodplain. Enriched with nearly 100 beautiful and arrested color photographs as well as an investigation of the cultural history of the region's human habitation, the book helps readers comprehend the complex environmental and social problems associated with Amazonian development and offers solutions that reconcile development with conservation.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Amazon has long been viewed by its European conquerors as a vast treasury of natural resources; gold, jute, and rubber among them. These and other goods still drive economic development in the region, and the quest for riches in the rainforest now has new elements, including the growth of cities and exploding human populations. The conservationist authors of Floods of Fortune offer a catalog of the Amazon's woes while they press for a program of thorough ecological investigations in the region that will identify unique and irreplaceable forms of life. If these investigations do not take place, and if economic development in the area continues apace, then the Amazon may be wholly destroyed without our ever knowing what potential riches we have lost--a cure for cancer, say, in the bark of an unknown tree, or a new source of food for developing nations.

From Kirkus Reviews

A comprehensive overview of the Amazon Basin's riparian ecology and of the economic development that threatens to destroy it. ``As the new century approaches,'' the authors write, ``the Amazon is being transformed by deforestation, urban growth, mining, dams, and widespread exploitation of its natural resources.'' Yet in world coverage of these events, they maintain, the Amazon serves as a backdrop; they offer the astonishing fact that more is known about the Amazon as a whole than about a handful of its tributaries, thanks to a lack of thoroughgoing ecological investigations of the entire region. This book, by three leading authorities on the Amazon, provides a summary of what is, in fact, known. Among the sobering matters that the authors cover is the destruction of Brazil's Atlantic rainforest over the centuries, ``a poignant lesson in the dangers of ignoring the need for conservation and rational management of natural resources.'' They examine the history of jute and rubber production, which brought the first wave of European and mestizo colonists into the Amazonian interior a century ago, and describe current economic trends, especially the clearance of rainforest for livestock grazing. Along the way, they offer a guided tour of the Amazon's rich and varied ecological zones, noting that ``most of the Amazon's legendary biodiversity is not . . . expressed in the vertebrates,'' but in insects, in the preservation of whose floodplain habitat lies the key to determining how to save the larger rainforest. That determination is pressing, because the destruction of that region ``could happen in just decades. . . . Unless action is taken within the next few years, it may be too late. The task would then be restoration, not preservation.'' A fine contribution to Amazonian studies and to the literature of environmental advocacy. (90 color photos, 3 b&w photos, 2 maps) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 184 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (October 15, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231104200
• ISBN-13: 978-0231104203
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,082,912 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars STRANGE MIX OF AMAZON RELATED THEMES, GOOD OUTCOME, March 1, 2009

By 

Denis Benchimol Minev "Amazonia" (Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Floods of Fortune (Paperback)

This book is written by some of the most knowledgeable and experienced Amazon scientists and explorers; having said that, it is unclear who the target audience is, since the book mixes part history of the region, part biology, especially as it relates to the floodplain, and part policy recommendations (with a strong environmental focus).

Though the book is very interesting and has especially good photography on the underwater floodplain, it is difficult to recommend it to a specific audience, since, for example, there are better books for tourists; there are also better books for history buffs; same for biologists. I guess it is for you if you find yourself at the intersection of these and need imagery to get a sense of what you read.

2 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars one of the best books on Amazonia, July 14, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Floods of Fortune (Hardcover)

This book is required reading for anyone interested in the Amazon, especially for those planning "eco-travel" in and around Manaus