In a year of fires and mudslides, Michael Frome's history and celebration of the national forests is never more timely. Whose Woods These Are, published in 1962, provides a foundation for understanding contemporary discussions of access to and conservation of wilderness in the United States. After providing an overview of the forest service history, Frome takes a tour of a variety of wilderness areas with rangers and also talks with those who benefit from logging and grazing on the public domain. While Frome is obviously a fan of the forests, he also believes that they can be a place for compromise between those who would protect them from any use and those who would wish that the public domain would be placed in private hands.

Whether you are a conservationist or just a fan of the forests, this book is a lovely read with beautifully written descriptions of forests. And...for those of you who find yourself completing the title with lines from Robert Frost, Frome does pay homage to the poem both in the dedication and the conclusion. ( )

An older book but easy to read. Lots of interesting stories about the national forests. I've read a lot about how the National Parks were formed but the story of the National Forests and their uses and abuses was worth reading. ( )