The Meaning of Wilderness

PRAISE

Beautifully illustrates the matter-of-fact ease of Sigurd Olson’s prose and wit. This is a valuable book for nature lovers and lovers of fine writing. — Dave Wood’s Book Report

A much needed and explicit study, which constitutes the only canon of Sigurd Olson’s varied expressions concerning wilderness and the human interest and spirit. David Backes has the gift of relating and exploring complex issues with effortless intellectuality, with the charm and good humor of a storyteller, and the simplicity of everyday affairs we can all understand. — The View from Listening Point

Anyone wishing to argue on the side of wilderness will find good quotes and great thinking in this book. — Ely Summer Times

The amazing thing about Olson’s writing is that no matter whether he is writing seemingly with simplicity about wilderness experiences in his books or asking people who may have never been there to understand the need to preserve wilderness, the same eloquent choice of words and phrases is always present. These essays, though some were written over half a century ago, still resonate with the issues we face today. — The Cardinal