THE FOREST RANGERS

Covering much the same ground as the reportorial/conversational Floherty Forest Ranger, Atwater tells it straight -- from his heart -- and an almost religious aura develops from his respect and admiration for his subject as a former special-service ranger. It's a history and a plea for conservation, a nostalgic recap of Wilderness experiences and a firsthand account of adventures and challenges; there are sections on fire-fighting, avalanche control, the observations of half a century of rangers, even a little background on forestry as a career. Tempering ruggedness with an unspoken quasi-pantheism, this is a moving narrative, often surprisingly so.