Codi Noline returns to her rural Arizona hometown to care for her father, a doctor descending into Alzheimer’s disease. While teaching high school biology, she discovers that a local mining operation is leaching sulfuric acid into the water supply, threatening the local fruit orchards and the town's physical survival. Codi navigates the technical realities of environmental contamination alongside personal grief and the political activism of her sister, Hallie, who is working in agroecology in revolution-era Nicaragua. The narrative tracks her attempt to document the ecological damage and stop the corporate destruction of the canyon's ecosystem.
This book serves readers interested in the intersection of environmental justice and rural sociology. It appeals to those who value realistic depictions of scientific observation and the logistical challenges of community-led conservation efforts. Readers finish the book with a clear perspective on how collective local action can confront industrial pollution. It provides a detailed look at the tension between economic resource extraction and biological sustainability, offering a grounded study of how individuals reconnect with their physical environment through land stewardship and political engagement.
Inward-looking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Empathetic Explorer. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 1990
- Language
- EN
