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Book published by unknown publisher REVIEWS:“Anyone interested in environmental issues should read this book.... Entertains and stimulates thought.” —Times Higher Ed Supplement “A compelling study on soil: why we need it, how we have used and abused it, how we can protect it, and what happens when we let it slip through our fingers.” —New Scientist “A comprehensive and readable summary of how civilizations have depended on the half-meter of life-generating topsoil that mantles our continents.” —Geotimes “Tell(s) a story which we cannot afford to ignore.... Well and eloquently told.” —Financial Times “Insightfully chronicles the rise of agricultural technology and concomitant fall of soil depth just about everywhere in the world, from prehistoric to modern times.... More than a history lesson of the legacies of past civilizations, the book raises a critical concern for modern times. We are currently losing soil 20 times faster, on average, than it is being replaced through the natural process. To meet the demands for food and, more recently, energy, we need Montgomery's scholarly, historical perspective, as well as the ability to project current trends of land management to future scenarios.” —Nature “Strengthen[s] appreciation for how important the soil is to our existence.... It is a must read for anyone who works with soil, and it should be of interest to all who care about our natural resources.” —Great Plains Research “Dirt jumps across geologic time and space and argues that how societies fare in the long run depends on how they treat their soils. Simple. Concise. You are your dirt.” —Hobby Farms “Fascinating insights into what be our most precious natural resource and gives important pointers toward sustainable land management.” —Bioscience “A new voice for the planet and its inhabitants has emerged.” —Out There Monthly “This dirt's-eye-view of history provides an interesting perspective on a vast range of topics, from the vanquishing commons and the rise of private estates in Europe to the drive to colonize the Americas, from slavery and the Industrial Revolution to floods and famines in nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century China. And no book on dirt can pass lightly over the Depression-era Dust Bowl or its lesser-know Soviet counterpart.” —Bookforum “A compelling read.... Enlightening, well founded and thoroughly researched.” —Plenty Magazine “Unique perspective, sound research, and compelling narrative.” —Library Journal “Argues persuasively that soil is humanity's most essential natural resource and essentially linked to modern civilizations's survival.... Makes a convincing case for the need to respect and conserve the world's limited supply of soil.” —Publishers Weekly “From this gritty and compelling state-of-our-earth report comes the inescapable truth that we are nothing if not dirty-minded. A brilliant and essential book.” —Roger Swain, science editor of Horticulture magazine “The relationship between soils and societies has been crucial for humankind for 10,000 years. David Montgomery brings a geomorphologist's eye and a world-historical vision to the subject, showing why it demands our attention.” —J.R. McNeill, author of Something New Under the Sun “In our cyber-charged age, it's easy to forget that all six billion of us stand on the thin skin of the earth. Humanity is agriculture and agriculture is soil, just as it has been for 10,000 years. David Montgomery—a competent digger of dirt and an engaging storyteller—shows how a close look at the soil can reveal a surprising amount about who we are and where we are headed. ” —Richard Manning, author of Against the Grain: How Agriculture Has Hijacked Civilization |