Forest Blood

by Jeff Golden

This is the rugged story of Jack Gilliam, a third-generation logger who, in the wake of a junk-bond Wall Street takeover of Oregon forests, becomes the timber war's first world famous casualty. Gilliam then becomes its most coveted pawn, as timber bosses, environmental protesters, cut-throat news reporters and politicians from county commissioners to the President, crawl over each other to profit from his tragedy.

312 pages, Paperback

Published February 1, 1999

About the author

Jeff Golden attended Harvard University as a National Scholar during the height of the Vietnam War and decided to swap the Ivy Halls for 20 acres in the backwoods of Oregon and a used chainsaw. He chronicled that journey in the book Watermelon Summer (Lippincott & Co, 1971). After a decade building homes, guiding whitewater river trips, and working in the forests of the Cascade Mountains, Jeff dropped back in to earn a Masters in Communications degree from Stanford University.

He has spent the last 25 years in politics, broadcasting and editorial journalism and organizational consulting. His political career includes service as a Jackson County (OR) Commissioner, Chief of Staff to the Oregon Senate President, and Environmental Policy aide to the City of Portland. During those years he wrote Forest Blood (Wellstone Books, 1998), the pre-eminent novel of the Northwest timber wars. His stand for responsible forestry made him the target of an unsuccessful recall campaign financed by national timber corporations, and earned him the first nomination ever from the state of Oregon for the JFK Profile in Courage Award, which partly sparked his newest book, UNAFRAID: A Novel of the Possible.

Jeff founded IMMENSE POSSIBILITIES (www.immensepossibilities.org), the weekly series he produces and hosts on public television. Check it out!

He lives in Ashland, Oregon, and makes a decent effort at staying balanced with cycling, rafting, music, acting and unpredictable adventures with his grown son and daughter. You can contact him directly at info@immensepossibilities.org.

Reviews

[Paul Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was gifted this wonderful novel by the author in 2010 and now just read it. Amazing! The characters are so real and memorable and the conflict between conservationists and lumber companies has not changed over the years. Very timely and a great read. The ending surprised and shocked me. Great work Jeff Golden!

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm loving this story. I grew up on the southern Oregon coast, right in the heart of timber country, so can picture all of the events the author depicts.

[Kitty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tried to read it but could not complete. I never got engaged.