The southern Appalachians encompass one of the most beautiful, biologically diverse, and historically important regions of North America. In the widely acclaimed Another Country: Journeying toward the Cherokee Mountains, Christopher Camuto describes the tragic collision of natural and cultural history embedded in the region. In the spirit of Thoreau's "Walking," Camuto explores the Appalachian summit country of the Great Smoky Mountains-the historical home of the Cherokee-searching for access to the nature, history, and spirit of a magnificent, if diminished, landscape.

As the author takes the reader through old-growth forests and ancient myths, he tells of the attempted restoration of Canis rufus, the controversial red wolf, to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. He details the impact of European occupation, and his meditations on the enduring relevance of Cherokee language, thought, and mythology evoke an appreciation of what were once sacred rivers, forests, and mountains.

Through this attempt "to catch glimpses of the Cherokee Mountains beyond the veil of the southern Appalachians," Camuto forges a new consciousness about the complex, conflicted past hidden there and leaves us with an important, thought-provoking book about a haunting American region.

Reviews

Another Country's purpose is to reintroduce history and to undo it, to recover wildness in the Appalachians, in the red wolf, and in the Cherokee. Christopher Camuto writes with the clear-sightedness and imaginative reach-both inward and outward-of a poet.

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Not since Barry Lopez welded landscape and imagination together in Arctic Dreams has a writer so ambitiously attempted to elevate local culture and landscape to universal understanding and insight.

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Camuto's highly engaging personal reflection on the reintroduction of the red wolf to Great Smoky Mountains National Park creeps up on you like Canis rufus itself, with stealth and cunning. Another Country is a deep regret over missed opportunities and a small measure of satisfaction in this effort at redress.

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Another Country is the canon and the standard by which all other nature books should be gauged.

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Camuto eloquently interwines the old growth in Great Smokey Mountains National Park, which is in North Carolina and Tennessee, with concerns about ecology, Cherokee mythology and a program to restore the red wolf.

Book Information
ISBN 9780820322377
Author Christopher Camuto
Format Paperback
Page Count 368
Imprint University of Georgia Press
Publisher University of Georgia Press
Weight(grams) 333g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 21mm