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Richard W. Halsey

Fire, Chaparral, and Survival in Southern California Paperback – Illustrated, January 28, 2008

by Richard W. Halsey (Author)

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This is the best book available that describes in detail California's most extensive plant community (the chaparral) as well as how to live safely in one of the most fire prone ecosystems on the planet. The book not only provides the basics of chaparral natural history, but also how wildfires are fought, how to protect your home and family from wildland fire, and why it is important to reconnect with one's surroundings. The revised and updated second printing of this book includes a new chapter on the importance of understanding the relationship between fire, people, and nature. Also included is an updated color photo identification section with 64 of the most common southern California chaparral plants and animals.

Print length

232 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Sunbelt Publications
Publication date

January 28, 2008
Dimensions

6.06 x 0.58 x 8.96 inches
ISBN-10

0932653693
ISBN-13

978-0932653697
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Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Complete with a 32-page full-color field guide to the common plants, birds, and animals that dwell in the chaparral, this book is a "must-have" for natural history buffs, as well as those Southern Californians interested in learning more about their natural surroundings.

From the Author

There are many voices in this book, each with a wealth of experience living within and studying the chaparral of southern California. But the message delivered is a consistent, coherent one that will offer you an honest description of what we know today about the chaparral and its intimate relationship to fire.

As you continue investigating the subject it will become quite clear there are a significant number of opinions relating to fire management that are opposed to one another. It is difficult for the average individual to wade through it all and decide who is right. Try it. But be sure you look at the data and analyze it for yourself. Do not allow a well drawn map or a persuasive argument hijack your objectivity. Analyze the data and ask questions, even if it makes you or those you ask uncomfortable or defensive.

Sometimes it just takes listening to a new perspective and examining data with a more critical eye to help see the truth.

Richard W. Halsey

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Sunbelt Publications; Revised and Updated edition (January 28, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 232 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0932653693
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0932653697
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.1 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.06 x 0.58 x 8.96 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #132,471 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #424 in Environmentalism
- #3,499 in Biological Sciences (Books)

Customer Reviews:
15 ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

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B. K. Allen

Pretty great addition to a prepper library

Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2016

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This book is great for any prepper in So Cal. We live in a harsh land that would be dessert without human intervention and the Colorado River so this book has a lot of great information. I got it as a gift for my father and I have read it myself. Neat facts and charts and just a ton of info in those pages. I think that if you live in So Cal on any amount of land this is a good investment and addition to your library.

Helpful

J. Peng

A MUST READ for ANYONE living in Southern California

Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2010

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This book is an absolute necessity for anyone living in Southern California, regardless of educational background and training or line of work. This book is vital to our survival in a region that historically burns, and burns on a large scale. It is, at once, an educational primer on local vegetation; a challenge to the long-standing and widespread myths and misconceptions about this vegetation; an overview of local fire behavior and its role in the local ecosystems; an examination of humankind's haphazard and precarious relationship with such fire; and a call to change that role by re-evaluating the way we view the land and ecosystems that are Southern California, and how we choose to live in it.

The first portion of the book defines, describes and discusses chaparral communities, stands of various types of vegetation that thrive throughout California and parts of Mexico. For the non-biologically or non-botanically inclined, DO NOT let this dissuade you. Not only does it help the reader to understand material in the subsequent chapters, but it also helps to open eyes to the remarkable natural beauty and wonder of Southern Californian ecosystems, beauty that thrives around us each and every day, but that most of us know little or nothing about, and thus cannot recognize. Following the crash course in botanical ecology are some wonderful accounts from a wide variety of contributors, including fire ecologists, veteran wildland firefighters, and survivors of some of Southern California's most catastrophic and devastating firestorms. Readers are sure to come away with a newfound appreciation for chaparral and its inherent beauty, as well as a greater understanding of the dangers humanity creates and then places itself in through our gross ignorance of the land and how we affect it.

Author Richard W. Halsey is a biologist/ecologist by passion, teacher by trade, and recently a wildland firefighter as well. He is the director of the California Chaparral Institute ([...]), a non-profit organization dedicated to education and the conservation of California chaparral, and teaches throughout Southern California. His book, "Fire, Chaparral, and Survival in Southern California" is recently published in a second edition; released in 2008, it includes discussions on the 2007 Firestorms that swept through San Diego, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, Ventura, and Los Angeles Counties, and Baja California in Mexico.

As a 13-year resident of Southern California, a 2-time evacuee of the 2003 and 2007 Firestorms, and a volunteer firefighter, I have been recommending this book to friends, family, and co-workers alike. Educational and eye-opening on a variety of levels, it even challenged some of the schooling I had learned on the job and in academy. For example, chaparral does not "need" to burn periodically to survive - a misconception commonly taught in wildland training. Quite to the contrary, too-frequent burning will destroy the chaparral entirely, leaving the countryside vulnerable to non-native, weedy invasions, and inviting yet more frequent, faster and hotter wildland fires. I recommend this book not only to general residents and property owners, but to wildland firefighters as well. With as much time as we spend studying building construction, compartment fire behavior, structural collapse, and other aspects of structural firefighting, it makes equally as much sense to put the same amount of time and emphasis on studying the nature of the natural habitats we go into to fight wildland fires.

The bottom line: If you live in Southern California, or fight fire there, BUY THIS BOOK AND READ IT.

3 people found this helpful

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Sara Bellum

Well worth reading if you are into the subject matter.

Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2013

Verified Purchase

Good job to Rick Halsey, the book is highly informative and accurate on a subject that is not only controversial but pretty important. It is a topic that has a lot of myths and inaccuracies promulgated by unsupported assumptions and sensationalistic media, so the book is timely. I give lectures to HOAs and others regarding wildlife and wildfire, and I found this book useful.

One person found this helpful

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Ali

Must-Read for Californians!

Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2013

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I thought I'd be bored to tears when my professor assigned this book. Fortunately, the author did an excellent job of keeping me interested with small narratives and packed full of excellent information. This book has greatly influenced me, and now it's all worn out from carrying it around and loaning it to people!

Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2013

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Reads like a collection of research papers and essays at times, but it is very informative. Some of the facts in the book are quite astonishing - wind driven fires catch up to birds in flight! There are also several first hand accounts that help tell things like it is.

3 people found this helpful

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Alekson

You want to read this if you live in Southern California

Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2015

Verified Purchase

Interesting points of view on cause and prevention of the fires. Easy to read. Very nice colored pictures of some plants and landscapes found in California.

I didn't know some terminologies used in the book, so author could have dedicated a few pages of the book to define some uncommon terminologies.

Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2017

Verified Purchase

Great information and will change your thinking about wildfires and their prevention or living with them.

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David W. Carr

Excellent overview of chaparral and fire

Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2007

Verified Purchase

This is a great resource for those living in chaparral areas. As a biologist I find the book particularly fascinating as it includes photos of common plants, chaparral communities (pre/post fire). I highly recommend picking this up to learn more about this interesting plant community and our human relationship to this valuable biological resource.

2 people found this helpful

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