false 1627127 4 Americans call Niagara Falls a natural wonder, but the Falls aren't very natural anymore. In fact, they are a study in artifice. Water diverted, riverbed reshaped, brink stabilized and landscape redesigned, the Falls are more a monument to man's meddling than to nature's strength. Held up as an example of something real, they are hemmed in with fakery -- waxworks, haunted houses, IMAX films and ersatz Indian tales. A symbol of American manifest destiny, they are shared politely with Canada. Emblem of nature's power, they are completely human-controlled. Archetype of natural beauty, they belie an ugly environmental legacy still bubbling up from below. On every level, Niagara Falls is a monument to how America falsifies nature, reshaping its contours and redirecting its force while claiming to submit to its will.<P>Combining history, reportage and personal narrative, <I>Inventing Niagara</i> traces Niagara's journey from sublime icon to engineering marvel to camp spectacle. Along the way, Ginger Strand uncovers the hidden history of America's waterfall: the Mohawk chief who wrested the Falls from his adopted tribe, the revered town father who secretly assisted slave catchers, the wartime workers who unknowingly helped build the Bomb and the building contractor who bought and sold a pharaoh. With an uncanny ability to zero in on the buried truth, Strand introduces us to underwater dams, freaks of nature, mythical maidens and 280,000 radioactive mice buried at Niagara. <P>From LaSalle to Lincoln to Los Alamos, Mohawks to Marilyn, Niagara's story is America's story, a tale of dreams founded on the mastery of nature. At a time of increasing environmental crisis, <I>Inventing Niagara</i> shows us how understanding the cultural history of nature might help us rethink our place in it today. 1621187 6 5 2008 Inventing Niagara: Beauty, Power and Lies total:47|5:16|4:16|3:10|2:5|1:0| 47 184 103 27 5 1 false false Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue May 20 10:04:29 -0700 2008 Wed Aug 13 10:25:22 -0700 2008
Instead, I wrote a lecture/performance piece entitled "Niagara! (you should have been Yosemite)"...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Mar 11 07:07:38 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 17:19:08 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Nov 23 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 22 17:56:28 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 23 07:25:45 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 28 17:39:30 -0700 2008 Wed Dec 03 05:59:23 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sat Oct 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 07 17:37:55 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 22 17:51:46 -0700 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Dec 03 18:56:01 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 03 19:00:16 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Jan 23 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Dec 17 07:25:35 -0800 2008 Fri Jan 23 06:27:09 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Jun 03 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 04 16:43:30 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 04 17:18:30 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu May 29 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed May 07 08:22:57 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 08 18:32:25 -0700 2008
OK, it improves once you're past the introduction. If you aren't a big-city cynic, skip the intro and you'll be fine. The first chapter o...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 19:48:34 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 19:50:55 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jan 19 10:03:20 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 19 10:03:20 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Thu Aug 14 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed May 21 12:00:05 -0700 2008 Thu Aug 14 14:42:32 -0700 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Mon Mar 30 19:35:03 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 30 19:35:03 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Jan 12 12:09:51 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 12 12:10:59 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Thu May 15 17:02:13 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 02 10:25:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Aug 25 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 12 16:12:01 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 26 15:23:50 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Aug 24 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 19 13:10:26 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 24 08:24:38 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 06 17:38:29 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 06 17:40:16 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Jul 13 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 15 18:59:08 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 15 19:02:16 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Oct 05 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed May 07 19:59:32 -0700 2008 Sun Oct 05 12:26:05 -0700 2008 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=1627127