[.ca] Coyotes and Town Dogs: Earth First! and the ... (ISBN 0816521859)

From Amazon.com:
When a few scruffy "redneck hippies" first gathered in 1980 in the isolated Pinacate of Mexico to discuss environmental issues, none had any idea that they would launch a movement that would involve thousands of activists and a good number of FBI agents. But by the time they emerged from that wild country, Dave Foreman and company had evolved into Earth First!, a group that vowed to protect wild places by whatever means necessary. Susan Zakin traces the movement over 10 years to its splintering in the early 1990s after Foreman and three other activists were arrested for conspiracy to destroy an Arizona nuclear-power plant. Zakin's vivid prose mirrors the movement's excitement, occasional terror, and just as occasional triumph--notably author Edward Abbey's notorious "cracking" of the Glen Canyon Dam in 1981 (a giant roll of black polyurethane provided the illusion that the dam had sprung a leak), which first brought Earth First! national attention.

The best of the several books on Earth First!:
This is an excellent journalistic account of the rise of Earth First!, far better than the other attempts at such (e.g. Rik Scarce's _Eco Warriors_). The historical context in which Earth First! was founded, as well as the influences on the group (especially Edward Abbey) are discussed in detail. Susan Zakin also gives the most complete account of the FBI's infiltration of and disruption of Earth First! starting in 1986, which culminated in the arrests of five activists, including EF! founder Dave Foreman, for involvement in a monkeywrenching caper that was set up by an FBI agent provocateur. The influx into the group of newer elements from the West Coast far-left starting in 1987, who soon began heavy criticism of the original Earth First! founders whose views were apparently not politically correct enough, is also covered in detail. Both of these elements (the FBI disruption and the West Coast ultra-left) led to infighting and a split late in 1990, with the original Earth First!ers of the 80's leaving the group and starting new publications and wilderness advocacy groups which have become the cutting edge of the ecology movement today. Earth First! itself survived the split but is now composed mainly of people whose background was in the urban anarchist, homeless and immigrant advocacy, neopagan, and feminist movements rather than in the grassroots conservation movement; thus, it is today a different group both in ideology and tactics than the original Earth First! of the 80's. Zakin does a good job of illustrating this facet of Earth First!'s history.

Provides the Big Wilderness Picture:
One half of the content of this book is a worthwile, concise history of the western U.S. wilderness preservation movement covering the last half of the 20th century. It is required reading for anyone with an interest -- or a motive ;>) As for the rest of the content, concerning Zakin's treatment of Foreman and as to her patronizing of Foreman (concerns raised here by previous critics), I don't know. I guess you had to have been there. But Foreman and EarthFirst! are mentioned only briefly before page 186 (of 443) and only so as to frame the history that portends Foreman's founding of EarthFirst! So, I would have to say that this history is relatively unbiased especailly given it's subject. After three years of trying to get the big picture of the entire history of contemporary wilderness advocacy, I have finally found it here. Really worthwile and entertaining.

Needs better research:
I am mentioned in this book as Dave's friend "Mike". I just wish the author had interviewed me, then she would have gotten the story right about Dave's leaving the Marines. When Dave decided the Marines weren't for him, he came back to Albuquerque and called me first. The story in the book and the story of what really happened are different. Similar but different. It makes me wonder about the authenticity of the rest of the book

Historic review of U.S. "no compromise" environmentalism:
If you want to know just how far the conservation movement has come in the US in the last 30 years, read this book. Susan Zakin tells it like it is, not bowing to the PC concerns of her enemies. Detailing the horrid compromising ways of large environmental organizations and government that pushed cutting-edge activists to lead by example in "no compromise in defense of mother earth." Some new age Earth First!ers hate this book. That's a good reason to read it. Great high-powered & entertaining writing style. Well researched. This book will teach, get you pissed off, and push you to become more radical. One of the top conservation books of the last decade.

Cruisin the enviro movement with the top down: a Must Read:
Zakin is the Tom Wolfe of the environmental movement, which, contrary to popular opinion, is NOT boring. Zakin shows that the history of the conservation is analogous to America's changing image of itself, a combination of Alexis deTocqueville and The Right Stuff with hiking boots. Funny, vivid, up-close-and-personal portraits of the New West hipsters and the Inside-the-Beltway politicos who use very different methods to do the same thing: fight a beautiful, losing battle to keep fragments of the natural landscape in functioning order. Coyotes gives neophyte and veteran alike a fun ride through the environmental movement's greatest hits, with a terrific biographical section on Edward Abbey, telescoped coverage of everyone from Aldo Leopold to Dave Brower, plus a compelling narrative thread based on the life of the surprisingly intellectual neo-redneck Dave Foreman, a quintessential American. Required reading -- not just for Birkenstock-wearers!