Customer Reviews

Glen Canyon Dammed: Inventing Lake Powell and the Canyon Country

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

 

 

Biases first: I'm a rabid "drain the lake"er.

Still, one's arguments can only benefit from an effective challenge, and Farmer provides this in spades. An impassioned environmentalist, Farmer nonetheless points out that artificial environments are pretty much what we live in, and that if we look only to "untrammeled wilderness" as the source of our connection with nature, we're likely to run out of that wilderness in short order.

This book is an effective history of Glen Canyon, but it's also a critical analysis of wilderness tourism in the whole of Southern Utah, and a cogent deconstruction of our attitudes toward built versus natural landscapes. And unlike many such tomes (Stephen Pyne's valuable if turgid How the Canyon Became Grand comes to mind) Farmer writes his critique in a personable, approachable voice. It's rare to see a capable writer approach such a multifaceted subject without fear of using the first person singular pronoun. Eminently readable.

This book is well written and enjoyable. It presents the case from those that wish to drain Lake Powell but is does so quite fairly and does give decent coverage to the pros of Lake Powell and and the access and beauty created by the massive Glen Canyon Dam.

Perhaps Mr Farmer angered more than he pleased but that usually shows that he is not completely one one side or the other.

A worthwhile read.

"Glen Canyon Dammed," to me, is about as good as nonfiction books get. It's got great characters, a historic story, fascinating information, and an author that feels completely trustworthy. The book is one of the fairest, most objective books out there on the subject of Glen Canyon and Lake Powell. It realizes that Glen Canyon was someplace wonderful, and that Lake Powell may be as well. It questions the very subjective idea of wilderness, deftly examines a very difficult topic, and challenges the cliches that often accompany any discussions of this matter.
Jared Farmer has written a book for those on both sides of this issue, though I've no doubt the author has a decisive opinion of his own. He presents old facts with new information, and shapes a perception of the area and of the issue that's both insightful and unique.
I recommend this book to anyone looking for a good read about this issue, about the West, or about the environment. No one should be allowed to gripe against either side of this contorversy without having read this book first.