Lost Wild America: The Story of Our Extinct and Vanishing Wildlife [Hardcover]

Robert M. McClung (Author), Bob Hines (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1994

Traces the history of wildlife conservation and environmental politics in America to 1992, and describes various extinct or endangered species.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up-This title, which first appeared in 1969, has been expanded and updated, taking a thorough look at the history of wildlife conservation in the United States. Through quotes from Charles Darwin to Henry David Thoreau to Al Gore, the plight of wildlife is examined species by species, policy by policy. McClung is evenhanded, even though the picture he paints is far from pretty. Many of the species discussed have been either hunted to the brink of extinction or forced out of their natural habitats by development. Current events are discussed, including the 1992 Environmental Summit in Rio and the campaign pledges of candidates Bush and Clinton on related issues during the 1992 election. Enhanced by Hines's pen-and-ink drawings, this is a must for any library collection. A thorough bibliography and index make the book an excellent resource for anyone seeking information on this timely subject.
Helen Rosenberg, Chicago Public Library, IL
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-8. Updated and expanded from the 1969 edition, which is a staple on library shelves, this useful, readable book gives readers the checkered story of American wildlife management from pioneer days to the present. A good resource for reports on extinct and endangered animals, it includes examples of vanished species as well as those coming back from the brink of extinction and others whose survival is still an open question. Well worth buying to replace the earlier edition and to update collections in this important area. Carolyn Phelan

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 293 pages
• Publisher: Linnet Books; Revised edition (1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0208023593
• ISBN-13: 978-0208023599
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,653,319 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Indexed, concise, and comprehensive, March 28, 2011

By 

Forest F. White - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lost Wild America: The Story of Our Extinct and Vanishing Wildlife (Hardcover)

Pros: If you wanted to know how many American species were discovered, how they are tracked, how they live, and how some of them are no more, this is a concise guide that offers that information. The chapters are divided by family and there is a good index. There are also illustrations of some species that cannot be seen anymore, or for which there are so few members that there is likely going to be no further generations. There are details about how still others are being saved and repopulated, with the details about how.

Cons: The quantitative data can get somewhat repetitive at times, but numbers are sometimes the the only information, in terms of pelts or bodies, that are available. It takes a strange positive tone near the end after recounting the many ways that human influence has directly destroyed entire populations and continues to do so. It delivers a single, somewhat conflicted solution, and I can't help thinking i would have been more effective if it let the reader come to their own conclusions about how to solve the problem of dwindling biodiversity and diminishing resources.

Conclusion: This book is a comprehensive history and catalog of species extinct or endangered in North America, although a lot of species migrate to other parts of the world. It describes how species dwindle, how some died off, and how others were restored. The case is well established about the value of some of them, which is really the most important information available from this text.