A River and Its City: The Nature of Landscape in New Orleans

A River and Its City: The Nature of Landscape in New Orleans by Kelman, Ari. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780520234321.

This engaging environmental history explores the rise, fall, and rebirth of one of the nations most important urban public landscapes, and more significantly, the role public spaces play in shaping peoples relationships with the natural world. Ari Kelman focuses on the battles fought over New Orleanss waterfront, examining the link between a river and its city and tracking the conflict between public and private control of the river. He describes the impact of floods, disease, and changing technologies on New Orleanss interactions with the Mississippi. Considering how the city grew distant―culturally and spatially―from the river, this book argues that urban areas provide a rich source for understanding peoples connections with nature, and in turn, natures impact on human history.