RESCUE THE EARTH! CONVERSATIONS WITH THE GREEN CRUSADERS Mowat, Farley Toronto, McClelland & Stewart (an Adrienne Clarkson Book), 1990. 282pp, cloth, $26.95, ISBN 0-7710-6684-8. CIP Grades 11 and up/Ages 16 and up Reviewed by Peter Croskery Volume 18 Number 5 1990 September Farley Mowat's Rescue the Earth makes an important contribution to the public understanding of the "environmental cause," but Mowat's dedicated readers might be disappointed that the book's format doesn't follow his more traditional story-line approach. It is, however, typical Mowat in that the messages are strong and very "earth oriented." In Rescue the Earth- Mowat interviews twelve representatives on the current environmental scene. Through these interviews the goals and philosophy of the individuals as well as their associated organizations — World Wildlife Fund, Canadian Nature Federation, Nature Conservancy of Canada, Sierra Club, Toronto Humane Society and the International Fund for Animal Welfare, among others — are enunciated. This, in itself, is a valuable contribution to the environmental movement at a time when there are so many groups competing for membership and dollars, and the public wonders who, or what, to support. Two excellent interviews are conducted with David Suzuki and Elizabeth May, both of whom are better known as individuals than for their association with a particular group. Mowat's interview with Michael Bloomfield of the Harmony Foundation may prove to be prophetic. A relatively new initiative, the foundation is attempting to develop a "cradle to grave programme of environmental education." The book is recommended for an older audience. I would recommend that it be read in conjunction with Monte Hummel's Endangered Spaces (Key Porter, 1989) as, together, these two books give significant insight into what is happening within the Canadian landscape. Peter Croskery, Virgil, Ont.