The Rediscovery of North America - by Barry Lopez (Paperback)

About the Book

Five hundred years after Columbus' landing in America, the National Book Award-winning author of Arctic Dreams and Crossing Open Ground delivers a devastating assessment of the explorer's legacy and takes the first step toward its redemption.

Book Synopsis

Five hundred years ago an Italian whose name, translated into English, meant Christopher Dove, came to America and began a process not of discovery, but incursion: "a ruthless, angry search for wealth" that continues to the present day.

This provocative and superbly written book gives a true assessment of Columbus's legacy while taking the first steps toward its redemption. Even as he draws a direct line between the atrocities of Spanish conquistadors and the ongoing pillage of our lands and waters, Barry Lopez challenges us to adopt an ethic that will make further depredations impossible. The Rediscovery of North America is a ringingly persuasive call for us, at long last, to make this country our home.

Review Quotes

"Eloquent, deep-reaching...may heads of state, students and stock clerks alike read this important volume; and may we all listen to its lesson." --Bloomsbury Review

About the Author

BARRY LOPEZ is the author of three collections of essays, including Horizon; several story collections; Arctic Dreams, for which he received the National Book Award; Of Wolves and Men, a National Book Award finalist; and Crow and Weasel, a novella-length fable. He contributed regularly to both American and foreign journals and traveled to more than seventy countries to conduct research. He was the recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim, Lannan, and National Science Foundations and was honored by a number of institutions for his literary, humanitarian, and environmental work. He died in 2020.

www.barrylopez.com