Editor:
I enjoyed the Journal’s Sept. 24 cover story on “Local Lit.” Humboldt County is home to a number of fine writers who have, per capita, produced troves of fun and important literature.
One selection conspicuously absent from the Journal’s list is Greg King’s 2023 book, The Ghost Forest: Racists, Radicals, and Real Estate in the California Redwoods. The book provides a breathtaking history of redwood logging and protection efforts in California, from 1850 through the Maxxam era. (King was a pioneer redwood tree-sitter, and his family’s historical roots in the earliest days of redwood logging enrich the narrative.) As a local resource the book is a treasure, but it is also a deeply researched page-turner of national importance that will shock, outrage and enlighten the reader. The Ghost Forest received excellent reviews in The Atlantic, Science, the Times Literary Supplement (United Kingdom), the Los Angeles Times and several other publications, and it earned praise from such literary luminaries as Charles Frazier, Richard Preston and David Suzuki. According to booksellers at Eureka Books, The Ghost Forest was the store’s best-selling selection for two years in a row, for good reason: Its relevance for today’s kleptocratic, environmental exploitations cannot be overstated. I recommend it for everyone.
Ken Miller, McKinleyville
Editor’s note: The Journal’s review of Greg King’s book (“The Ghost Forest’s Haunting Histories,” June 15, 2023) can be found online at northcoastjournal.com/arts-scene/the-ghost-forests-haunting-histories.
This article appears in Gold in the Cracks.
