From Publishers Weekly (starred review): "In a tour de force of historical reportage, Timothy Egan’s National Book Award–winning story rescues an iconic chapter of American history from the shadows."

Holly says: "Anyone living in the American West has had to adapt to the raging wildfires of recent years. While I’ve read a number of books about fire season, this narrative nonfiction from one of my favorite travel and nature writers remains one of the best. In 1910, a fire burned an area the size of Connecticut in a weekend, across Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Egan also weaves in the history of Teddy Roosevelt, his chief forester Gifford Pinchot, the origins of the U.S. Forest Service, and what it’s meant for generations of people who live, work, and recreate in and around forests."