A Fierce Green Fire

For anyone interested in wildlife, birds, wilderness areas, parks, ecology, conservation, environmental literature, and ethics, the name Aldo Leopold is sure to pop up. Since first publication, Aldo Leopold: A Fierce Green Fire has remained the classic short, inspiring biography of Leopold--the perfect companion to reading his ever popular A Sand County Almanac. Winning numerous awards, this comprehensive account of his life story is dynamic and readable, written in the context of the history of American conservation and illustrated with historic photographs.

Marybeth Lorbiecki has now enriched A Fierce Green Fire in a way no other biography on Leopold has, adding numerous chapters on the ripple effects of his ideas, books, ecological vision, land ethic, and Shack, as well as of the ecological contributions of his children, graduate students, contemporary scholars, and organizations--and the wilderness lands he helped preserve. Lorbiecki weaves these stories and factual information into the biography in a compelling way that keeps both lay and academic readers engaged.

In the introduction to this edition, Lorbiecki makes it clear how much better our lives are because Leopold lived and why today we so radically need what he left us to bring about paradigm shifts in our ethical, economic, and cultural thinking. Instead of losing relevance, Leopold's legacy has gained ever more necessity and traction in the face of contemporary national and world challenges, such as species loss and climate change. Even the phenological studies he started at as a hobby are proving valuable, showing the climatic shifts that have occurred at the Shack lands since the 1930s, recognized by the plants and animals.

Marybeth Lorbiecki, M.A., has long been involved in the field of ecological ethics and conservation. Currently she is editor and the director of Interfaith Oceans (formerly Interfaith Ocean Ethics Campaign). Her book Following St. Francis: John Paul II's Call for Ecological Action (Rizzoli Ex Libris, 2014) launched her into worldwide conversation about the intersection of faith and ecology that has gained more momentum through the works of Popes John Paul II and Pope Francis, which she highlights (preparing readers for Pope Francis' encyclical on care of creation).

At the same time, she has remained a respected expert in the field as demonstrated by her ongoing speaking and writing engagements on Leopold and his land ethic. She has also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. Besides Lorbiecki's nonfiction works for adults, she has over 25 award-winning children's books, including The Prairie that Nature Built (Dawn Publications, 2014) and Planet Patrol: A Kids' Action Guide for Earthcare (Cooper Square Publishing, 2005), and Things Natural, Wild, and Free: The Life of Aldo Leopold (Fulcrum Press, 2012), which honored as a John Burroughs Nature Award for Young Readers. Most of her books explore the relationships between people and the land, and to each other.