Arlene Blum is truly one of the pioneers of climbing, leading the way and clearing a path for women in expeditionary mountaineering.  This is her story, told in her own words:  her drive and determination in overcoming barriers; her dreams, achievements and disappointments in life; and the triumphs and tragedies amongst the high peaks of the world.

. Outdoor Literature Category .

Winner.

Savage Summit is a brilliantly written account which follows the lives of five women who climbed K2.  Shifting through hours of interviews and written materials, Jennifer Jordan weaves together a riveting tale of adventure, ambition, love and tragedy.  This book is so well written that it reads like a novel.  Mark these words:  Savage Summit is destined to assume an honored place among some of the best climbing books ever written.

Honorable Mention.  At the Mercy of the River:  An Exploration of the Last African Wilderness.  By Peter Stark.  Ballatine Books, New York. ISBN 0345441818

At the Mercy of the River easily could have been standard outdoor fare, a simple chronicle of descending an African river.  But master story teller Peter Stark serves up something far more satisfying: an inward journey.  The outward journey a is trip down Mozambique's Lugend River, but the river turns out to be more difficult than anyone had imagined, and the party finds themselves pushed to the limits.  Using his descriptive prowess, Stark captures the heart-thumping anxiety, the building tension between party members, and his own dark uncertainties. 

. Natural History Literature .

Combining exhaustive research and an engaging and lyrical writing style, author Alan Burdick explores the ecological minefield of exotic, non-native species.  We zig and zag through that minefield from Hawaii to Guam to San Francisco to Alaska, following the work of scientists in the new field of invasion biology.  What we learn in the end is unsettling: nature herself may pose the greatest threat to the future of our planet. 

. Nature & the Environment Category .

Winner.

Winner.  Mountain Ranges of Colorado.  Photographed and Written by John Fielder.  Designed by Mark Mulvany.  Westcliffe Publishers, Englewood, CO.  ISBN 1565794966 

This is a magnificent book!  Mountain Ranges of Colorado is a milestone in the art of mountain photography.  It's also a labor of love, the culmination of fifteen years of dedicated photographic exploration throughout the mountains of Colorado.  Everything about this book is impressive from the solid cover which resembles a smooth piece of Rocky Mountain granite, to its cohesive and intelligent design, to John Fielder's masterful photography. 

"On a little green island, stands a little red house, with a little orange cat, a little gray mouse . . . ."  So begins, Sharon Lovejoy's gem of a children's book about colors and critters.  Written for young children, ages three and older, Lovejoy uses tender rhyme, playful fonts, and wondrous illustrations to introduce a bestiary of creatures inhabiting homes, yards, fields and woods.  It's certain to excite and delight all young budding naturalists.

Honorable Mention.  The Leaf Man.  By Lois Ehlert.  Harcourt, New York.  ISBN 0152053042

Winner.

Once again Stackpole Books scores a winner with their series on basic outdoor skills.  The photographs, creative design, and clear and understandable text combine to make this book a marvelous introduction to the exciting sport of whitewater kayaking.

Without a doubt, this is a reliable and straightforward instructional text covering the knowledge and skills necessary for safe glacial travel.  Its real strong point is the accompanying illustrations by Mike Clelland: delightfully whimsical but remarkably clear and understandable.

. Outdoor Adventure Guidebook Category .

Winner.

This is a marvelously unpretentious compact guide to running the rapids of the famous River of No Return.  Included are maps, GPS coordinates, camp locations, schematics of major rapids and plenty of helpful hints.  Plus, it's waterproof and just the right size to slip under a life jacket.

Honorable Mention.  Red Rock Canyon: A Climbing Guide.  By Roxanna Brook and Jared McMillen.  The Mountaineers Books, Seattle.  ISBN 0898864860

There is none more complete.  This guidebook to the famous Red Rocks climbing area, 30 minutes from Las Vegas, is fittingly produced and remarkably comprehensive with over 1,500 routes described.

. Nature Guidebook Category .

Winner.

Snakes of the Southeast is an eye-catching new nature guidebook melding good descriptive writing, a dapper design and strikingly crisp photographs.  The 52 species of snakes found in the southeast are fully covered:  size charts, distribution maps, key identifiers, habitat descriptions.  It's all there in one very nicely wrapped package. 

Honorable Mention.  Nature's Strongholds: The World's Great Wildlife Reserves.  By Laura and William Riley.  Princeton University Press, Princeton.  ISBN 0691122199

Life-time Achievement Recognition.  Farley Mowat for Sea of Slaughter, Never Cry Wolf and other works.  (Sea of Slaughter.  By Farley Mowat.  Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, PA.  ISBN 0811731693.)  Note: Never Cry Wolf and other Mowat books are available from a variety of publishers.

This year, with the submission of Sea of Slaughter by Stackpole Books, the judges decided to take the opportunity to honor Farley Mowat for a lifetime of work of writing about the outdoors.  Mowat's most well known, and perhaps most far reaching, book is Never Cry Wolf.  First written in 1964, Never Cry Wolf is often credited with helping change the public's image of wolves as wanton killers.  Now several decades later, the wolf is seen correctly as an integral part of the wild environment, contributing to the balance between prey and predator.
      In Sea of Slaughter, Mowat centers on the marine environment of the North Atlantic coast from Labrador to Cape Cod.  Backed up by extensive research, he documents the years of human exploitation and the resulting decimation of coastal sea life.  At the end of the book, Mowat offers one glimmer of hope.  He sees small signs that we are making progress towards protecting sea life.  "We may succeed," he writes "in making man humane . . . at last.  And then the Sea of Slaughter may again become a Sea of Life."  Let us hope that Mowat's wish may some day come to pass.