ALA Booklist (Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 CDT 1998)

Recuperating from a serious eye injury, young John Muir decided to use his precious sight viewing the inventions of God, and he set out on a 1,000-mile walk through the U.S. The famed naturalist later founded the Sierra Club and lobbied successfully for Yosemite to become the nation's second national park, after Yellowstone. Decades later, environmentalist David Brower propelled the Sierra Club into a powerful organization with political clout on environmental matters. As a college student in the twenties, Rachel Carson dismayed some of her teachers by changing her major to science from English. Surely a gifted writer such as herself could never find success in the man's world of science, they worried. Brisk, interesting portraits of these and several other environmentalists--Jay Darling, Rosalie Edge, Aldo Leopold, Olaus and Margaret Murie, and Gaylord Nelson--make up Byrnes' collective biography, which also serves, at least partially, as a history of the American environmental movement. Black-and-white photos, mostly of excellent quality, enhance the narrative. Unfortunately, there are no source notes. Bibliography; list of agencies and organizations. (Reviewed September 15, 1998)

Horn Book (Sun Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 1999)

This book offers eight biographies of leaders in the environmental movement, from John Muir, who founded the Sierra Club and the system of National Parks, through Rachel Carson, author of Silent Spring, to Gaylord Nelson, who founded Earth Day. Written in clear, simple prose, the book is unfortunately illustrated with dim, fuzzy black-and-white photographs. A list of resources is included. Bib., ind.

School Library Journal

Gr 6 Up-Nine environmentalists are followed from childhood, and readers see how they came to know and appreciate nature. Some of the individuals profiled wrote in order to gather support for their work; others used physical activism to bring attention to their causes. John Muir, Aldo Leopold, and Rachel Carson are here, and lesser-known activists are also given attention: Ding Darling, Rosalie Edge, Olaus and Margaret Murie, David Brower, and Gaylord Nelson. Unlike most authors of books on this topic for a young audience, Byrnes is an experienced environmental writer, and takes an affectionate tone in describing her subjects. Some of the black-and-white photographs are fuzzy, most likely due to the age of the photos used for reproduction, but they add an appropriate historical touch. No glossary is included, and pertinent terms are defined within the text, which may distract some readers. A bibliography, list of government agencies, and environmental groups to contact are all included.-Mary B. McCarthy, Windsor Severance Library District, CO