This America Of Ours

Bernard and Avis DeVoto and the Forgotten Fight to Save the Wild

De: Nate Schweber

Narrado por: Fred Sanders

The untold story of the extraordinary fight to defend American wilderness from McCarthyism, and the radical couple who led the charge—and inspired a future of conservation

In late-1940s America, few writers commanded attention like Bernard DeVoto. Alongside his brilliant wife and editor, Avis, DeVoto was a firebrand of American liberty, free speech, and perhaps our greatest national treasure: public lands. But when a corrupt band of lawmakers, led by Senator Pat McCarran, sought to quietly cede millions of acres of national parks and other western lands to logging, mining, and private industry, the DeVotos entered the fight of their lives. Bernard and Avis built a broad grassroots coalition to sound the alarm—from Julia and Paul Child to Ansel Adams, Arthur Schlesinger Jr., Alfred Knopf, Adlai Stevenson, and Wallace Stegner—while the very pillars of American democracy, embodied in free and public access to Western lands, hung in the balance. Their dramatic crusade would earn them censorship and blacklisting by Joe McCarthy, J. Edgar Hoover, and Roy Cohn, and it even cost Bernard his life.

In This America of Ours, award-winning journalist Nate Schweber uncovers the forgotten story of a progressive alliance that altered the course of twentieth-century history and saved American wilderness—and our country’s most fundamental ideals—from ruin.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

Packed with information

I'd never heard of the DeVotos before listening to this interesting book. I'm so glad they were bold and fearless enough to be conservationist during the middl

Informative, shocking, insightful.

It was a well told story of both the historical context of conservation and the politics that affected it, and also the personal characters that made such a difference. I very much appreciated learning so much about this history and being able to shed light on how it plays out with current events, sadly. Some of the storyline went back-and-forth and made the timeline a bit hard to follow.

Reviving the DeVoto story revives the conservation spirit

Nate Schweber's biography of Bernard and Avis DeVoto brings back to life the key role this couple played in protecting America's landscapes and its democratic soul. Schweber builds his narrative by turning a light on Avis's life with Bernard and drives home the point that this was a team effort. Bernard's book jackets may only credit Bernard, but Schweber brings Avis to the front cover. Diving into the lives of DeVoto, the reader roots for B. and smiles when Avis gets her due. Best of all the DeVoto's voice for conservation and democracy is revived and brings to life the many lessons we need so much today. Great read and audio production.

Where would we be without Bernard and Avis

Thank you Nate Sanders for opening my eyes to an immensely important couple and the impact they have had on all of our lives.

The gravity of this little known story.

It reads like a novel! Enjoyed it all! The gravity of this little known episode in our national park’s history.