HEAVEN IS UNDER OUR FEET

What do Jack Nicholson, Kurt Vonnegut, Jimmy Carter, Louise Erdrich, Sting, James Michener, Meryl Streep, Robert Bly, Robert Redford, and Tom McGuane have in common? They—and 58 other celebrities—have contributed original essays (or, in the case of Garry Trudeau, a cartoon) to this likable book, with all royalties going to support the Walden Woods Project, dedicated to keeping Walden Woods (which surround Walden Pond) free of threatened commercial development. Being a celebrity project, it's no surprise that each essay begins with a half-page b&w photo of its author and often ends with a bit of puffery (e.g., ``Bette Midler is a confirmed organic gardener and loves all living things'')—but most of the pieces range interestingly far beyond the specifics of Walden Woods (although some, such as those by E.L. Doctorow and Wallace Stegner, are specifically about Thoreau and his pond) and are generally engaging (Tom Cruise writes of learning about nature during a foray into the Amazon jungle; Michael Dorris writes of his commitment to the land on which his farmhouse stands). Sprinkled with passages by Thoreau, it's an attractive volume with an honorable raison d'àtre, and one moreover that doubles nicely as a simple, inviting introduction to the entire ecological question.