The American West has long-captivated the imagination of generations of film-lovers and writers, outdoor recreationists and explorers, gold-seekers and miners, whose arrival in the area has changed the social, political, and economic course of American history. The western landscape itself is categorically and geologically distinct from many other American regions as it contains huge acres of federally owned and managed land. This modality of ownership is primarily a western phenomenon that has its origins in the admission of various states into the Union, upon which state-owned land was transferred to become the property of the American people. It is the federalization of public lands that has proved to be contentious and is the crux of John L. Smith’s book.
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