Ecotopia Emerging: Ernest Callenbach: 9780960432035: Amazon.com: Books
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Ernest Callenbach
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Ecotopia Emerging Paperback – June 1, 1981
by Ernest Callenbach (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars 67 ratings
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This prequel to Callenbach's classic Ecotopia is a multi-stranded novel that dramatizes the rise and triumph of a powerful American movement to preserve the earth as a safe, sustainable environment.
The story springs from harsh realities: Toxic contamination of air, water, and food has become intolerable. Nuclear meltdowns threaten. Military spending burdens the economy. Politicians squabble over outdated agendas while the country declines. But then dedicated people begin to respond in their own ways to the crisis, and a fresh hope arises.
A panorama of history about to happen, Ecotopia Emerging weaves many individual destinies into an absorbing epic: the birthing pains of a new nation.
Editorial Reviews
Review
''The newest name after Wells, Huxley, and Orwell.''--Los Angeles Times
''No one I've given this book to has been able to put it down.'' --Renewal
About the Author
Ernest Callenbach, who also wrote Ecotopia, grew up in rural central Pennsylvania, attended the University of Chicago, and has lived in Berkeley, California, since 1954. He edited natural history, science, art, and film books for the University of California Press. He now devotes full time to writing (his newest book is Ecology: A Pocket Guide) and lecturing; he gardens ardently, has two compost bins, and walks a lot.
Product details
Paperback: 334 pages
Publisher: Heyday Books; First Edition edition (June 1, 1981)
Language: English
More about the author
› Visit Amazon's Ernest Callenbach Page
Customer reviews
3.9 out of 5 stars
3.9 out of 5
67 customer ratings
Mr. C.
5.0 out of 5 stars They are both two of my favorite books.Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2014
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I have the original Ecotopia and now this "prequel". They are both two of my favorite books.
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Bit Twiddler
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting readReviewed in the United States on April 11, 2010
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I read Ecotopia first. This was good prequel but personally think first was better. That being said, I was a lot younger when I read the first one and it had more impact on me. Am saving both for my granddaughters when they grow up.
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B. D. Hellmann
5.0 out of 5 stars We need another kind of society, and this is itReviewed in the United States on December 7, 2014
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If you've read Ecotopia, you'll want to know how Callenbach conceived that terrific story'
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Joyce Adams
5.0 out of 5 stars Callenbach Pens Another WinnerReviewed in the United States on November 12, 2013
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A great follow to one of the best books ever, "Ecotopia", and went straight to my favorites. The author makes more sense than most in his vision of what the future could be.
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jOHN GUERRIERO
5.0 out of 5 stars Five StarsReviewed in the United States on January 2, 2015
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good sequel
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Aristeros
2.0 out of 5 stars Ecotopia Floundering: Doesn't Work as Propaganda, and is Not Even Remotely BelievableReviewed in the United States on April 5, 2015
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Callenbach's prequel novel to "Ecotopia," which describes the why and wherefore of a secession of a good chunk of the Pacific Northwest in favor of being green, takes an ethical stance of "the ends justify the means," or, more specifically, "It's okay to bomb places, because The System is evil and gave you cancer." The characters are fairly one-dimensional, with a lot of "tell" and not too much "show. The plot is a bit heavy-handed, with villains almost cartoonishly villainous, a government with over-the-top evil and incompetence, convenient plot devices (so I can power a city with how many solar cells?) where I'd have preferred at least pseudoscience, and so on.
This is to be expected of a propaganda piece, but it should not be taken as such. The trouble is, even when read as an attempt to convert, an even slightly skeptical reader will not be converted--this piece will only be loved by the leftist choir Callenbach is preaching to. As a manifesto-cum-fantasy, it's childish where with plot and character development it could have had literary and social value.
If you want an Ecotopia, it's not going to emerge this way, guys.
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Alexis
5.0 out of 5 stars A mostly realistic approach to the choices that need to be madeReviewed in the United States on August 7, 2011
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I loved this book because it is an entertaining and thoughtful approach to the eminent threats of environmental destruction. In the 21st Century and especially in the United States (because we have the luxury to think about how to improve our state) we should consider practical solutions to the imposing threats of environmental decay. We need to allow nature to thrive because that allows for us, as humans, to live better. This is one solution to that problem.
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Lynn Hamilton
3.0 out of 5 stars Clean, Green, and MeanReviewed in the United States on March 11, 2005
Format: Paperback
Ecotopia Emerging is a wonderfully detailed utopia based on the ecological values that have been emerging in the northwestern United States for around the past thirty years.
Callenbach, who first developed his notions into a sort of sim city, went on to convert into a novel. It starts with Vera Allwen, a strong-willed matriarchal type who launches a new political party based entirely on environmental principals. Gathering together a few of her best tree-hugging friends, Vera proceeds to lay the groundwork for a takeover of northern California, Oregon, and Washington. Callenbach, who is incredibly optimistic about human nature, imagines that Vera's ideas take off like wild fire, and, in no time, those three states declare themselves independent from the rest of the United States. "Ecotopia now!" is their fierce battle cry.
In many ways, Callenbach's book captures the intense ecological convinctions of many (not all) people who live in the northwest. And his novel is realistic to the extent that the Ecotopians don't expect to convert the rest of the country any time soon.
Callenbach has taken quite a bit of criticism for the poverty of his character development and story telling abilities. And it's true that his characters basically all talk like nice college professors, folksy, but knowledgeable. When the writer tries to create a different argot for his villain Whitey Whitehead, Whitey's ignorant patter sounds hopelessly corny and stereotypical.
But ultimately it's hard to fault Callenbach for his Ecotoia series. His vision is certainly one that is intended to save humanity from itself, and he has thought through the elements of a future Ecotopia with amazing thoroughness.
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