2018 NATIONAL OUTDOOR BOOK AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED
A race to reach the North and South Poles. A trip down the Arkansas River. An investigation of a murder deep within the Grand Canyon. These stories and more are among the winners of 2018 National Outdoor Books.
The exploration of the North and South Poles is the subject of this year’s winner of the History/Biography category: “To the Edges of the Earth” by Edward Larson. Larson concentrates on one year when explorers are on the verge of attaining some of the great prizes in polar exploration. That year is 1909. Expeditions are underway at the top and bottom of the globe. It is the year in which some of the great figures in exploration make their marks: US Naval Officer, Robert Peary; African American adventurer, Matthew Henson; Italy’s Duke of the Abruzzi; and Britain’s Ernest Shackleton.
“To the Edges of the Earth" is quite simply great writing backed up by great research,” said Ron Watters, chair of the National Outdoor Book Awards. “To give you some idea of the extent of the research for the book, Edward Larson, the author, travelled to the South Pole. If you enjoy adventure literature, you can’t go wrong with this book.” Larson’s book is one of fourteen winning books in this year’s award program. Sponsors of the program include the National Outdoor Book Awards Foundation, Idaho State University and the Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education.
Awards are presented in ten, often highly competitive, categories. The competition in the History/Biography category was so intense this year that the judges chose a second winner. That second winner is “Elevations: A Personal Exploration of the Arkansas River” by Max McCoy. The book describes McCoy’s kayaking experience on the Arkansas River from its source in Colorado, across Kansas to an ending point near the Oklahoma border. “It’s not only a story about kayaking the Arkansas River, it’s also about the cultural history of the river,” said Jim Moss, an outdoor industry attorney and a long time judge for the program. “McCoy does an excellent job of blending stories of the river’s past as he paddles his way downstream.”
The investigation into a murder in the Grand Canyon is the subject of the winner of the Outdoor Literature Category. Titled “Pure Land,” it was written by Backpacker Magazine’s Southwest Editor, Annette McGivney. McGivney’s research involved repeated trips down an eight-mile trail to the small Native American village of Supai and nearby Havasu Creek, a popular backpacker’s destination. “This is an extraordinarily well crafted work,” said Watters, “Over a period of years, McGivney dug deeply into two lives, both who come from greatly differing backgrounds and cultures, and both who came together one fateful and tragic day. The deeper she digs, however, the more she finds her own life drawn into the narrative. In the end, the book is no longer about two lives. It’s about three.”
Two winners were selected in the Natural History Literature category. The first is “A Naturalist at Large,” consisting of a collection of essays by Bernd Heinrich. “Henrich is one of the finest nature writers of our time,” said Watters, “He writes in a down-to-earth, easy going style that all can enjoy.”
The other winner in Natural History is “Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore” by Elizabeth Rush. Rush’s book addresses climate change and specifically focuses on the rise of sea level along America’s coastlines. She visits Maine, Rhode Island, Louisiana, Florida, Oregon and California, where she examines damage to coastal environments and interviews people whose homes and livelihoods are at risk or have already been washed away.
John Miles, who is a judge for the awards program and the former Dean of Environmental Studies at Huxley College, calls Rush’s book “a powerful work and a sophisticated analyses about one of the most pressing issues of our time.”
The winner of the Design and Artistic Merit category is “Sage Grouse: Icon of the West.” This coffee table sized book is filled with photographs by Noppadol Paothong. "In nearly every photo, he has managed to obtain the perfect marriage of subject, angle, light and background," said James Moss. "This is an outstanding work of art and a testament to this enduring icon of the west."
The Children’s Book winner is “Oregon & Washington 50 Hikes With Kids” by Wendy Gorton. Gorton’s book is designed to be taken along on hikes with children. The hikes were carefully evaluated by Gorton for their appropriateness for children, primarily in the 3-8 year range. Along with each hike, she has included a treasure hunt in which children try to find the flora and fauna pictured in the book.
Complete reviews of these and the other 2018 winners may be found at the National Outdoor Book Awards website at: www.noba-web.org.
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