| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 89.1

You have not been recognized as a subscriber to JAH online. About 181 words from this article are provided below; about 334 words remain.

If you are a individual member of the Organization of American Historians, you may:: • login here if you have already registered for online access.; • Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.
• Set up your online account for the first time.
If you are not a member of the Organization of American Historians, you can:: • Join the OAH and receive many member benefits including print and electronic issues of the Journal of American History.
• Purchase a research pass to gain two-hour access to the entire History Cooperative web site. You will have full access to current issues of the Journal of American History (86.1-present). Note: the Research Pass does not provide access to JSTOR's holdings of the Journal of American History.
Instititutions can:: • Subscribe to this journal and receive print and electronic issues.
• Activate your existing subscription so that we recognize your IP number ranges.

| Book Review | The Journal of American History, 89.1 | The History Cooperative

Book Review

Year of the Fires: The Story of the Great Fires of 1910. By Stephen J. Pyne. (New York: Viking, 2001. xiv, 322 pp. $25.95, ISBN 0-670-89990-9.)

In the last few years forest fires in the United States have been in the public eye. First occurred the spellbinding Yellowstone National Park conflagration of 1988. Then in 1994 came the tragic deaths of fire fighters in Colorado. The summer of 2000 saw huge blazes in Idaho and Montana, while in the Southwest prescribed burns bolted from "control" and licked at Los Alamos. All those events captivated the nation and, at least with regard to Yellowstone, the world as well. For a good part of the twentieth century, federal forest fire policy prescribed controlled burns sparingly and mandated the suppression of human-caused and wildfires. Beginning in 1968, official governing circles slowly altered their position on fire, having finally realized the benefits it can produce. The resultant newer practices combined with persistent drought in the West have made forest fires, however frightening they always are, seem rather commonplace in the contemporary era. . . .

There are about 334 more words in this article. Please log in (or, if you are not yet an authorized user, please go to the User Setup page) to gain full access rights. Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.