In reviewThe Grizzly Maze: TimothyTreadwell's Fatal Obsessionwith Alaskan BearsNick JansDutton Publishing. 2005

Unless you'vebeen in hiberna-tion, you proba-bly know that inOctober of 2003,self-proclaimedbear expert Tim-othy Treadwelland his girlfriendAmie Huegue-nard were fatally

mauled by grizzlies in Alaska's KatmaiNational Park. Treadwell's life anddeath have been documented in theWerner Herzog film "The Grizzly Man,"a Vanity Fair aiticle, a "PrimeTlme" seg-ment, and in other media.

So how do you write a story wheneveryone already knows how it ends?In The Grizzly Maze, Nick Jans doesnot show an answer to this problem.This book is easier to enter than toexit. By page 112 of this 274-pagebook, the final chapter of Treadwell'slife has already ended. With the protag-onist out of the picture so early, thesecond half of the book drags at arather excruciating pace. Jans pads histale v^th information about the behav-ioral differences of black and brov nbears, how to store your food whencamping, and his own experienceswith grizzlies. Related information, buthardly captivating, especially sinceJans often covers ground that he'salready covered.

Jans misses the most fascinatingaspect of the tale, which, of course, isTYeadwell himself. What made him tick?Why would a man leave the comfort ofhis Galifornia home every summer for 13years to rough it in the Alaskan wilds insuch close proximity to one of North

America's most powerful and dangerouscreatures? How did he actually manageto co-exist with the bears for 13 years?You'll be no closer to such insight intoTreadv*;ell's psyche after reading thisbook than you are now.

You should, however, be better ableto form an opinion on Treadwell's cho-sen avocation as environmentalist andprotector of bears, a move that createdcontroversy before and after his death.There are those who contend thatTreadwell's presence among the bearswas vital for their safety- Others assertthat Treadwell was a detriment to theanimals' welfare, and that his annualtreks ultimately did more harm thangood. Jans gives time to representativesfrom both camps. Unfortunately, he doesso in a manner that is v nldly erratic anddisorganized, not only chronologically,but also thematically and stybstically.Add a handful of boring photos of suchsubjects as a park closure sign and acleared campsite, embarrassingly ama-teurish sketches of the attack site andthe Alaskan coastline, and the result is abumpy, poorly edited book that barelydoes justice to such an exciting topic.

— Audrey Webb

The Ocean and CoastalConservation Guide(2005-2006)David Helvarg, editorIsland Press. 2005

This is the ocean decade. Hundredsof groups have sprung up across theUnited States to work on marineissues, from local watershed- andcoast-protection groups, to networksworking on issues such as coral reefprotection or gillnetting.

The Ocean and Coastal Conserva-tion Guide is an invaluable aid to theseactivists, or to anyone who wants tobecome one.

The Guide - subtitled "The Blue

MovementDirectory" - is alist of more than2,000 activistgroups; federal,state, local, andtribal agenciesworking onmarine orcoastal issues;marine science schools and other edu-cational resources; and marine parksand sanctuaries. Each entry contains adescription of the group s programarea, as weU as updated contact infor-mation. Compiling this valuableresource was certainly a daunting taskfor editor David Helvarg and his staff. Amust-buy for anyone concerned withthe state of the oceans. — Chris Clarke

(more book reviev\/s on page 44)

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