{"product_id":"the-great-central-valley-californias-heartland-a-centennial-book","title":"The Great Central Valley: California's Heartland (A Centennial Book)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis marvelously evocative book by Stephen Johnson  Gerald Haslam  and Robert Dawsonall natives of the Great Central Valley of Californiais the first to explore in detail the rich natural and social history of the states agricultural heartland.  Gerald Haslams text celebrates the tenacious people of the Valley  where hard work and ingenuity are the means to both survival and success. This is land that gives little but yields  under pressure  to creative experiments with unusual crops. Stephen Johnsons and Robert Dawsons stunning photographs reveal the immense beauty of the region as well as the delicate relationship between the land and the people who work it.  The Central Valley is Californias economic hub as well as its physical center. A plain some 430 miles long and up to 75 miles wide  surrounded by mountains and covering nearly fifteen million acresabout the size of Englandthis valley has become the richest farming region in the world. More than 25 percent of the table food produced in the U.S. is grown here. Its southernmost county  Kern  produces more oil than some OPEC countries.  The Valley is as rich in people as it is in resources. Tagalog  Hmong  Spanish  English  Cantonese  Russian  Italianall are spoken here. The population of farm laborers  small family farms  powerful agribusinesses  and  increasingly  urban professionals make the regions economic disparities as palpable as its cultural diversity.  The Valley has also produced a wealth of writersMaxine Hong Kingston from Stockton  Richard Rodriguez and Joan Didion from Sacramento  Gary Soto from Fresno  among othersas well as the award-winning El Teatro Campesino (The Farmworkers Theater).  But the Valley is imperiled. The past 150 years of massive agricultural expansion and population growth have systematically destroyed much of the areas original wildlife  and the \"plain of majestic oaks\" seen by early travelers has vanished. The region is also plagued by a host of critical issues: chemical pollution  soil erosion  water politics  the treatment of minorities  economic inequities  farm foreclosures. Johnsons and Dawsons photographswhich are complemented by engravings by Thomas Moran  paintings by Albert Bierstadt and William Hahn  and photographs by Carleton Watkins  Dorothea Lange  and Russell Lee  among othersbring home to us  as only visual images can  that it is up to us to safeguard the future of this endangered valley  to conserve its extraordinary human and natural wealth  and to try to reclaim some of its lost grandeur.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44964053811253,"sku":"ByrdShop_0520077776","price":29.46,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780520077775.jpg?v=1770446937","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-great-central-valley-californias-heartland-a-centennial-book","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}