Losing Eden

An Environmental History of the American West (Environment and Region in the American West)

By: Sara Dant

Narrated by: Lee Ann Howlett

In Losing Eden award-winning historian Sara Dant debunks the myth of the American West as “Eden” and instead embraces a more realistic and complex understanding of a region that has been inhabited and altered by people for tens of thousands of years.

In this lively narrative Dant discusses the key events and topics in the environmental history of the American West, from the Beringia migration, Columbian Exchange, and federal territorial acquisition to post–World War II expansion, resource exploitation, and current climate change issues. Losing Eden is structured around three important themes: balancing economic success and ecological destruction, creating and protecting public lands, and achieving sustainability.

This revised and updated edition incorporates the latest science and thinking. It also features a new chapter on climate change in the American West, a larger reflection on the region’s multicultural history and updated current events. Cohesive and compelling, Losing Eden recognizes the central role of the natural world in the history of the American West and provides important analysis on the continually evolving relationship between the land and its inhabitants.

The book is published by University of Nebraska Press. The audiobook is published by University Press Audiobooks.

©2023 Sara Dant (P)2023 Redwood Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"This is a penetrating take on the complicated ways that humans impact their environs." (Publishers Weekly)

“Essential read for anyone who cares about the past and future American West.” (Ken Burns, filmmaker)

“An environmental masterpiece...a brilliant book...Highly recommended!” (Douglas Brinkley, Rice University)

Great Book!

This book is loaded with fascinating information and great writing. If you love the west and/or the environment, you will love this book. It will give you a whole new perspective on both.

A landmark book performed well

This is the second edition of Sara Dant’s Losing Eden—not just a reissue, but truly brought up to date (2023). The book itself is a fascinating journey through US West history told from the perspective of human-nature interactions from geological time through last year. If you’re new to the field, it’s a great starting place, but there’s plenty here for readers (academic and public) who know the topic. Well performed by the voice artist as well.