BookBrowse Reviews Silent Snow by Marla Cone

Malignant cocktails of chemicals silently poisoning populations. Current Affairs

From the book jacket: Traditionally thought of as the last great unspoiled territory on Earth, the Arctic is in reality home to some of the most contaminated people and animals on the planet. Tons of dangerous chemicals and pesticides from the United States, Europe, and Asia are being carried to the Arctic by northbound winds and waves and amplified in the ocean's food web.

Silent Snow is not only a scientific journey, but a personal one. Whether hunting giant bowhead whales with native Alaskans who are struggling to protect their livelihood, or tracking endangered polar bears in Norway, Cone reports with an insider's eye on the dangers of pollution to native peoples and ecosystems, how Arctic cultures are adapting to this pollution, and what solutions will prevent the crisis from getting worse.

Comment: To get an insight into the cause of this problem and why it effects the colder climates of the Arctic more so than the rest of the world and, most importantly, why it matters, spend five minutes reading the excerpt at BookBrowse. It will be time well spent! If you haven't already done so, I also encourage you to browse The Weather Makers.

'Starred Review. Cone's superb and affecting delineation of the Arctic's chemical crisis and its consequences for us all is galvanizing and necessary.' - Booklist.

'Gloomy, stern and wholly memorable - certainly for environmentalists, wherever they may be, but, let's hope, reaching policymakers as well.' - Kirkus Reviews.

This review was originally published in The BookBrowse Review in May 2005, and has been updated for the April 2006 edition. Click here to go to this issue.