The Last Stand: The War Between Wall Street and Main Street over California's Ancient Redwoods [Hardcover]

David Harris (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 26, 1995

By chronicling the takeover of Pacific Lumber Company--which had been operated by one family since 1904 before being sold to a Texas-based conglomerate--Harris gives readers a metaphor for the disappearance of a gentler, kinder capitalism. The Last Stand is a book about how some people, often against their will, end by killing the very thing--the forest itself--that has long given them sustenance and shelter.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The Pacific Lumber Company (PL), owner of many of the country's old-growth redwood stands still in private hands, practiced a brand of forestry different from that of most of its competitors. Family-owned and -operated for decades, PL refused to clear-cut, believing instead in sustainable forestry. Employees were also considerately treated. All this changed dramatically when corporate raider Charles Hurwitz, with help from Wall Street legends Ivan Boesky and Michael Milken, succeeded in his unfriendly, if not necessarily fully legal, takeover. Hurwitz made millions and changed the face of the redwoods for all time. Journalist Harris (Dreams Die Hard) details the clash of three distinct cultures: greedy Wall Street financiers; idealistic environmentalists; and those attempting to earn their living from the forest. Although the book is a good read, a great deal of liberty seems to have been taken with dialogue and thoughts. With the notable exception of some pulp writing?"Night had fallen like a cast-iron safe down an elevator shaft"?Harris's tale is gripping and informative. Author tour.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Harris, who has written for Rolling Stone and the New York Times Magazine, focuses here on Pacific Lumber-a company that had been logging for generations in northern California when it became the target of a takeover. Pacific Lumber's environment-friendly logging techniques (no clear cutting, preservation of old growth forest), to which it owed its longevity, had been in practice for years, when environmental groups like Earth First attacked the company. Harris relates in a compelling story the fallout from the takeover and the pressure from "tree huggers" and their effect on the inhabitants of Scotia, California. Harris's book is written in an almost conversational style by a writer used to reporting events as seen through the eyes of those involved. His book serves several needs: as entertaining reading; a company history; an environmental movement diary; and a glimpse into one of the last remaining company towns in America. For public libraries.
Lisa K. Miller, Paradise Valley Community Coll. Lib., Phoenix
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 373 pages
• Publisher: Crown; 1 edition (December 26, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812925777
• ISBN-13: 978-0812925777
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,609,216 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating example of the 80s....but, September 28, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Last Stand: The War Between Wall Street and Main Street over California's Ancient Redwoods (Paperback)

It should have been soo much more. Running in the same gamet as Alston Chase's "In a Dark Wood" David Harris goes into some of the same territory. The 'good' lumber company taken over by Wall Street and turned into the mirror of its former self, this book is at it most fascinating describing the moves between PALCO and Charles Hurwitz. The arrival of a hurrican alows him to suceed in his takeover but the company is taken over by the resultant costs both to its people and the enviroment. The final point is well taken.....if you lumber in oblivion there can be no winners. Only with sustained yield can the enviroment, employees and shareholders come out ahead. The only winnter with Palco was Charles Hurwitz.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a great read..., July 30, 2007

By 

Paul U.K. (Santa Monica, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Stand: The War Between Wall Street and Main Street over California's Ancient Redwoods (Paperback)

The Last Stand is a fascinating story and a well written one at that. Couldn't put the book down. My God Charles Hurwitz is a corrupt individual. He should be serving a life sentence in stead of living high off the hog in Houston Texas. Anyone interested in the environmental movement and the destructive practices of modern day clear cutting should read this book.

0 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A little boring, October 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Last Stand: The War Between Wall Street and Main Street over California's Ancient Redwoods (Paperback)

very drawn out and boring. does get interesting at times