Silent Spring Revolution: John F. Kennedy, Rachel Carson, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and the Great Environmental Awakening

by Douglas Brinkley

Silent Spring Revolution has descriptive copy which is not yet available from the Publisher.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Environment, Science, Politics, Nature, American History

893 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 15, 2022

About the author

Douglas Brinkley is a professor of history at Rice University and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. The Chicago Tribune has dubbed him “America’s new past master.” His most recent books are The Quiet World, The Wilderness Warrior, and The Great Deluge. Six of his books have been selected as New York Times Notable Books of the Year. He lives in Texas with his wife and three children.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silent Spring Revolution

I have read nearly one hundred science and nature books that now have a place on my 5 star bookshelf including two Douglas Brinkley books: The Quiet World and The Wilderness Warrior. I like books on the environment especially.

While Silent Spring Revolution is the most voluminous and ambitious of Brinkley's works, this also felt the most encyclopedic. It does not have a great reading flow because of its dense nature and as a result it took me a long time to finish.

I have spent much of my free time adventuring in the parks and wildernesses that Brinkley describes in this book. The focus is on those parks and laws that were established during the middle of the 20th century. It was important for me to understand the unsung heroes who fought for these areas and also the origin of the environmental laws that we take for granted today.

4 stars. This is a great reference for anyone who is an environmentalist or conservationist.

[Quirkyreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow.

This book is going to be added to my environmental studies library , and it going next to my copies of “Silent Spring” by Rachel Carson.

[Joseph J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Douglas Brinkley is always prepared to deliver a fresh take on history. In this-the third volume on his environmental/Presidential trilogy- Brinkley combines his scholarly acumen with a passion for the outdoors. Not as celebrated an environmentalist as the Roosevelts, subjects of Brinkley's previous volumes, John F. Kennedy is portrayed as an emerging conservationist in the wake of Rachel Carson's revolutionary Silent Spring. Lyndon B. Johnson, so burdened with the legacy of Viet Nam, carried the policies of the New Frontier into the Great Society, accompanied by his remarkable Lady Bird. The true hero of these administrations is Interior Secretary Stewart Udall, probably the most amazing Interior Secretary in history. (His break with LBJ at the very end, exacerbated by Lyndon's pride, is a sad read.) Finally, we have the most reluctant Richard Nixon, he of the oxford shoes padding along a Pacific walk. Nonetheless, and while always suspicious of environmentalists as a threat to capitalism, he accomplished a lot, the EPA first and foremost. The big shock: John Ehrlichman as advocate for the environment. All in all, as Doug Brinkley would say...highly recommended.

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a behemoth of a book, chock full of information and facts and more than a little bit of Kennedy fetishization and a ton of research.

Finishing this book, however, you'd kinda get the idea that thanks to the efforts of Rachel Carson, Kennedy, LBJ, Lady Bird and Nixon, we wouldn't be in the climate crisis that we are...but that's far from the truth (as mentioned in the epilogue). Without their actions (thanks to many individuals and grassroots organizations advocating for environmental protections) things would be a whole lot worse, but they didn't stop the burgeoning crisis, and many of their efforts were halted and impeded and crushed during the Reagan and Bushx2 years.

Anywho, I learned a lot and recommend the audiobook.

[Luffy Sempai · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on the environmentalism of the US, from cradle to grave I am tempted to say. The tone is not impartial. However I did find the tone in question shrewdly chosen, as it befits its aims in writing this book. I will read it again in 2026, a year from now.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s amazing the details of history that you don’t realize you don’t know until you learn it. As a professional environmentalist, I have long been familiar with the policies and protections stemming from the new environmental movement of the 60s and 70s, but never really knew the stories of how they came about. I picked up Silent Spring Revolution to learn those stories and came to realize just how little I actually knew about the evolution of the movement. I was also surprised to learn that this is the third book in a trilogy by Douglas Brinkley about environmental policy in the United States. The first two of the trilogy are Wilderness Warrior, about Teddy Roosevelt’s Presidency, and Rightful Heritage, about FDR’s Presidency, both of which I hope to read.

While Silent Spring Revolution is ostensibly about the environmental policies of the Kennedy, LBJ and Nixon Presidencies, it actually begins with the Truman administration. While FDR had been a strong conservationist, Truman had no environmental sympathies and sided strongly with big industry. Eisenhower proved to be even less interested in protecting the environment. During their terms, however, public concern over environmental impacts were growing. Knowledge of the human health effects from nuclear fallout resulting from frequent nuclear tests was growing, as was concern over the environmental impacts of chemicals like DDT. The loss of shoreline habitat due to rapid development, smog problems in places like L.A. and the impacts of large dams on wild rivers were also becoming topics of concern.

New activists rose to curb the environmental impacts from the booming U.S. economy and Cold War driven nuclear testing. David Brower of the Sierra Club, Howard Zahniser of the Wilderness Society and Sigurd Olson of the National Parks Association pioneered a new form of environmental activism in the fight against the proposed Echo Park Dam in Dinosaur National Monument. Barry Commoner, Norman Cousins and Coretta Scott King led the fight to ban nuclear testing, with some help from Albert Schweitzer. Eugene Odum founded the field of ecology and William O’ Douglas, a Supreme Court justice, was becoming the most versatile activist in the country alongside Brower, seemingly playing a role in nearly every environmental battle between 1940 and 1980.

Champions for the environment began to appear in Congress as well. People like Rep. John Saylor (R) of Pennsylvania, Rep. Richard Neuberger (D) of Oregon, Sen. Hubert Humphrey (D) of Minnesota and Sen. Henry “Scoop” Jackson (D) of Washington. Later came Rep. John Dingell (D) of Michigan, Sen. Frank Church (D) of Idaho, Sen. Ed Muskie (D) of Maine, and Sen. Gaylord Nelson (D) of Wisconsin (originator of Earth Day).

When first elected to the House, John F. Kennedy was not among the environmental leaders in Congress despite his close family friendship with William O’ Douglas. JFK was, however, in love with the eastern seashore and he was influenced by his mother’s strong interest in ecology. It was efforts to protect shorelines, particularly his beloved Cape Cod, that drew him into environmental fights after he had been elected to the Senate. When JFK ran for President in 1960, he made environmental protection a key policy platform, while his opponent in the primary, Lyndon Johnson, and in the general, Richard Nixon, both ignored it.
JFK was elected President and he made one of the most important decisions for the environmental movement in American history, he appointed Stewart Udall as Secretary of Interior. Udall would serve both Kennedy and Johnson and would be critical to the passage of many of the environmental policy achievements of the 1960s. He also embraced the Civil Rights movement and worked to diversify the National Parks’ staff. Udall was the greatest Secretary of the Interior in American history.

With Udall's help, JFK passed numerous shoreline protections and established new wildlife refuges and national monuments. JFK, with the help of Norman Cousins, also negotiated a nuclear test ban treaty with the Soviets, which is often considered his greatest achievement.

Rachel Carson was a zoologist and oceanographer who had gained fame publishing books about seashore ecology. She was growing alarmed by reports of DDT’s impacts on wildlife and became increasingly involved in the fight against the chemical, especially after Marjorie Spock launched a first of its kind lawsuit to try to stop the spraying of DDT on Long Island. This inspired her to write a book about it, which she did while battling a cancer that would ultimately take her life.

The subsequent book, Silent Spring, was published in 1962 and it was revolutionary in its impact on Americans’ understanding of the pollution crisis and how ecology was connected to public health. CBS produced a documentary that brought wide attention to the book and, despite the controversy over the book, Kennedy embraced its conclusions.

Carson was not the only writer drawing attention to environmental concerns and public lands. Robert Frost, Wallace Stegner, Jack Kerouac, Robert Boyle, Joseph Krutch, Edward Abbey and Sigurd Olson all influenced their audiences by drawing attention to environmental threats and the value of public lands. Ansel Adams’ and Philip Hyde’s beautiful photos also inspired the nation toward environmental conservation.

Remarkably, one of the strongest environmental leaders of the 1960s was Walter Reuther, the head of the United Auto Workers union. He was the most environmentalist of any labor leader in American history and played a critical role in funding the first Earth Day. Sadly, he was killed in a suspicious plane crash in 1970 after several prior assassination attempts.

Following JKF’s assassination, Johnson passed the Clean Air Act and the Wilderness Act, as both had been priorities for Kennedy. Despite not previously showing much interest in the environmental movement, LBJ made environmental conservation a core part of his Great Society and became even more outspoken on environmental issues than Kennedy had been. The First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson, also embraced environmental issues and became the lead advocate for a beautification effort across America, ultimately resulting in the Highway Beautification Act.

LBJ won reelection in a landslide in 1964 and went on to achieve one of the greatest environmental records in American history. Johnson passed Wild & Scenic Rivers, Wetland Preservation, Water Quality, Pesticide Control and National Historic Preservation legislation, as well as the first Endangered Species Act, which spurred a sea change in Americans’ respect for other species and set the stage for saving several species from extinction. He established the National Trails System, numerous wildlife refuges and national monuments, and the North Cascades and Redwood National Parks, both the result of long hard fought battles.

Efforts to address what would later be called environmental racism were also gaining momentum during the 1960s. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke about the connection between civil rights and environmental protection and Cesar Chavez led California agricultural workers in a fight for better working conditions, including regulations on the use of pesticides. Bobby Kennedy, who was far more of an environmentalist than JFK, greatly respected and became close friends with Chavez.

Despite the public impact of Silent Spring, years passed with little government action against DDT, so citizens began suing to force action and thus the environmental law movement was born in the late 1960s. It has proven to be one of the most effective ways to achieve change and it reflected the more aggressive environmentalism that was taking hold across the country.

In 1968, LBJ decided not to run for reelection and Bobby Kennedy was assassinated, so Hubert Humphrey became the Democratic nominee for President with Ed Muskie as his Vice Presidential candidate. It was an environmental dream team, but they refused to end the war in Vietnam, so many Democrats sat out the election and they lost to Nixon.

Nixon surprised everyone by embracing the environmental movement. While he was suspicious that it was part of a left wing plot to undermine capitalism, he felt that it was a political winner and he had a personal connection to protecting marine species. He let the Democrats in Congress do much of the heavy lifting in passing legislation and then slyly took credit for the results. After he left office, however, he rarely spoke of his impressive environmental accomplishments.

Under Nixon, important additions were made to the Endangered Species and Clean Air Acts. Nixon was persuaded to sign the National Environmental Policy Act, one of the most important environmental pieces of legislation in history, and he established the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Nixon signed the Coastal Zone Management Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, which saved whales, seals, dolphins, otters and other sea mammals from slaughter.

Nixon selected Russell Train as an environmental advisor. Train was central to the passage of the Endangered Species Acts of ’69 and ’73 and the National Environmental Policy Act and was later appointed as the second administrator of the newly created Environmental Protection Agency. William Ruckelshaus was appointed by Nixon as the first administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and, in addition to masterfully organizing the agency, he boldly banned DDT in 1972. John Ehrlichman, who would go to jail for his involvement in Watergate, was another key advisor pushing Nixon to embrace environmental policies.

In 1968, the Apollo 8 astronauts took a picture of earth from space that inspired more people to embrace environmentalism. Then, the Santa Barbara oil spill in 1969 supercharged American opposition to pollution generally and spurred a desire to clean up the environment. This was followed shortly by press reports about the Cuyahoga River catching fire in Cleveland, which helped lead to the Clean Water Act of ’72, which Nixon vetoed but Congress voted to override. The United Nation’s conference in Stockholm in ’72 also took the United States’ environmental movement worldwide.

Following the oil embargo crisis of ’73, however, energy companies effectively blamed environmentalists for a lack of domestic energy production, finally turning the tide against thirteen years of unprecedented environmental achievements. Environmentalism had been a bipartisan issue until Ronald Reagan was elected in 1980 and put industry hacks in charge of environmental policy. The Republican Party has permanently turned against environmentalism ever since.

Remarkably, Kennedy was the first President to be warned about climate change and Nixon had been urged by one of his environmental advisors to take action to curb greenhouse gas emissions. If they had only taken action then!

This is an incredibly dense book full of details about the environmental fights of the time and those who led them. It is impossible to reference more than a small fraction of them in this review. The book is a critical read for anyone wanting to understand this key period in the evolution of the environmental movement.

[Andrew Yockey, PhD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another book I could NOT put down! This was a wonderful history of American environmental policy in the ‘50’s-70’s and how we are repeating the mistakes we made previously.

[Brian Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent history. Very detailed. As I read about JFK’s conservation interests, I felt like I would like to get more involved in conservation. As I finished the first 1/3rd of the text (back matter begins on p. 675) I felt a bit overwhelmed by the length of the text. As I finished the Epilogue, I wished for more. I did not realize how the atom bomb testing of the 1940’s - 1960’s motivated the conservation movement. There were a few members of the US Congress supporting conservation in the late 1950’s. JFK energized US government support for the environment and LBJ continued and institutionalized the government role. Nixon probably had the strongest institutional refinement of US government environmental support with the formation of the EPA and passage of the the National Environmental Protection Act. Rachel Carson appeared in much of the text until her death in 1964 and her work was mentioned later in the text. Unfortunately, Nixon’s resignation marked the turn of the Republican Party from environmental support to anti-environment. I recommend taking the time for this book. It mentions an early recognition of climate change due to CO2, but since government largely ignored it until the Obama administration, it was beyond the scope of this book. Overall the book presents the history of positive leadership applied to environmental conservation.

[Craig Werner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The single book you need to understand the environmental politics of the Long Sixties. Brinkley caps off his environmental trilogy (I've read parts of the Teddy Roosevelt book and will finish it and read the FDR volume at some point) with by far the best study of how Rachel Carson's legacy unfolds through three presidential administrations. The surprise for many readers, myself among them despite my immersion in the contextual literature, is that Lyndon Johnson rivals Teddy R as the greatest environmental president in US history. That got suppressed at the time because most environmentalists focused on the environmental devastation of Vietnam, and that simply reinforces the sad reality that the war undercut LBJ's chance to go down as the greatest president in US history. But the fact is that he guided programs JFK imagined through congress in ways JFK could never have managed and then extended the vision in truly revolutionary ways. Brinkley gives full credit to JFK and provides a moving portrait of his love of the ocean. And he tightropes the Nixon administration with sympathy without surrendering his critical intelligence. Nixon didn't have LBJ or JFK's gut level commitment, but as a political realist he understood that acts like establishing the Environmental Protection Agency and signing the Endangered Species Acts were in his best interest. Just a great book in the Sixties history cannon. Worth reading every one of its 760 some pages.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

When the current administration is undoing environmental protections and pushing legislation that will sell off public lands, this is not a pleasant book to read. Quotes from a younger RFK Jr do not help.

It is so obvious that the world has been wrecked and the health of humanity destroyed and still we have power hungry men threatening to blow everything up.

The one shining light is the example of people who committed their lives to making a difference.

And also I did add some places to my travel bucket list.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book. A must read for naturalists and presidential history buffs alike. I thoroughly enjoyed the history of the environmental movement being told through the scope of different presidencies and administrations. The progression of historical events being narrated through policy changes was fascinating. I especially enjoyed the anecdotes about Richard Nixon, and learning about the conservation legacy Lady Bird left behind in Texas.

[Nancy Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating look at the far-reaching influence of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring.

[Vera · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ll read anything by Mr. Brinkley. Comprehensive, compelling and courageous! Tells the why and the how and the undone that still needs to be done!

[Austin Carter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not going to recommend this unless you are thoroughly interested in the subject matter, namely the politics of environmental legislation.

This book unfortunately left me wanting, which perhaps isn't all that bad of a closing feeling. It was a long book, but not very tedious, and sometimes repetitive. Essentially there were some heroes of the environment in the mid 20th century US government that were inspired by *gasp* a woman who had the audacity of speaking out against big chemical business. That would be Rachel Carson. Then there were so, so many politicians who yes did good things to establish and formalize departments, parks, laws, acts, etc. That's all good stuff. Then with the rise of conservatives with Reagan and subsequent Republican presidents conservation and the environment have once again dropped in value bowing down to the Almighty GDP. However, it should be noted that such presidents including LBJ and Nixon were pretty damn corrupt. And relatively easy wins in the space of environmentalism that gained footing as a bipartisan and comparatively benign field is really not something to drop your jaw over. I will say I liked the characters of bill Douglas and especially Stewart Udall. They were exceptional and singular minded. Whereas the aforementioned presidents were steeped in atrocious corruption.

Overall I was just kind of depressed about the country. For the environmental movement this was a pretty good time. But what about the centuries beforehand when there were no teeth in laws to protect the land and her resources. How did the trappers and bison hunters and Bald eagle slaughterers and oil men and uranium miners and DDT sprayers get away with so much? It speaks a lot to the cultural values of Americans, which granted have shifted a lot, but the battle wages on. **Drill, baby, drill...

I previously read the book Chief Joseph and the flight of the Nez Perce and I'm reminded of their beliefs that we are not to dig into the flesh of our mother. And associated with many indigenous principles, consequences are inevitable for those who devalue and violate the land.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This 28-1/2 hour audiobook was the perfect length to listen to on our road trip from Michigan and California and back. Brinkley traces the origins of what is broadly know today as the environmental movement to Rachel Carson’s book, Silent Spring, as she sounded the alarm about disappearing species, toxic environments, etc. He then shows how presidential administrations from Kennedy through Nixon, along with nonprofits and citizen activists, oversaw the establishment of national parks, wilderness areas, the EPA, and other policies and environmental regulations that we take for granted today. We learned a lot!

[Chuck McGrady · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is quite a tome. I wish it had been written when I was coming up within the environmental movement. The book documents the environmental movement from its beginnings in the United States with its focus being the presidencies of John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, ending for the most part with Nixon's impeachment.

The book identifies the national environmental leaders, like David Brower, Barry Commoner, Ansel Adams, Denis Hayes, Marjorie Stoneman Douglas and a host of others who played major roles in various nonprofit or advocacy organizations. The writer connects these leaders to the public officials and others who turned their advocacy into law, aside for the presidents it includes a bipartisan host of figures from Senators Nelson, Church, Jackson, Muskie, and Humphrey, Reps. Aspinall, Saylor and Udall, Justice William O. Douglas, Cabinet Secretaries and high federal officials, including Stewart Udall, Russell Train, and William Ruckelshaus, and scientists, most notably Rachel Carson.

Although the book wasn't published until 2021, I wish I could have read it during my years in leadership at the Sierra Club. My first environmental work was in college following the first Earth Day. I interned in the Interior Department when Rogers Morton was Secretary. I lived with Curtis Bohlen's family at the time.

I liked the book because it brought back memories of environmental leaders--many Sierra Club leaders--that I knew. I learned a lot from the book, and I wish I had known some of the leaders' backgrounds when I first met them. There were surprises like learning of Sierra Club President Phil Berry's blow-up at a meeting with Richard Nixon. How I would have loved to hear Phil's version of that.

I wouldn't say that the author is neutral in simply documenting history. He clearly has strong environmental values, but he does seem to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the people whose work he documents.

While I typically recirculate books that I read, I think this is one for the bookshelf since it will be useful to refresh my memories--mostly of people who I knew and with whom I worked.

[Brenton · Rating 2 out of 5]

After 200 pages, I finally had to pull the plug. Brinkley clearly has a passion for the topic, but I think that’s the book’s undoing — there is *way* too much tedium here, to the point where I think the book (at least up to where I read) could have been cut in half with no real loss to the central narrative. To understand the midcentury environmental movement, do we really need a couple pages on every single river or conservation site that Bill Douglas or Stewart Udall toured?

[Dan Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was not quite as good IMO as Brinkley's histories/biographies of the two President Roosevelts' environmental legacies because, lacking a central figure, the focus is more diffuse. Nonetheless, it was another enjoyable and well-researched piece by this author. This book had the added treat for me of surfacing information about events and persons from my early childhood about which I remembered hearing on the evening news.

[Alex Edmundson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has an incredible amount of information about how different politicians viewed the environment and how it impacted their policies on the environment when they held office. I really liked it but I felt like it could have been split into 3 books for each of the major presidents. Overall, I would recommend it.

[Holden Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comprehensive and dense history of a revolutionary time in government development of systems thinking re: environmental protection. Devastating to learn we were on such a seemingly good track and yet another clear point in history where Ronald Reagan ruined everything.

[Will DeMan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poetically written origin story of the American Environmental Movement. Weaves together tandem histories of America's reaction to nuclear proliferation, pesticides, and the need for capital W Wilderness. Douglas Brinkley is the greatest environmental history writer of our age.

[Anna Abney Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Sam Sugerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 1950s were defined by debates between conservation and preservation, echoing the philosophical divisions between John Muir and Gifford Pinchot. By the 1960s, ecology emerged as an academic field and with it a growing recognition that humans could profoundly damage surrounding ecosystems. In the mid-1960s, President Johnson became the first to be briefed on climate change, and President Nixon established the EPA and NOAA. Time and again, the realization that environmental impacts are lasting has spurred bipartisan action. Though the tune has changed and the problems are more "wicked," the environmental movement that started with Silent Spring is alive and well.

History is taught so that its mistakes are not repeated. Although the book scarcely addresses the 21st century outside of footnotes, it serves as a reminder of how fragile the environment remains and how quickly bad actors in positions of power can undo millions of years of natural progress with a single signature or even a post on Truth Social.

[Emma Roehrig · Rating 4 out of 5]

dense

[Amber Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amazing information, but TOO LONG and too depressing to finish right now with anti-environmental policy changes in 2025.

[Todd Stockslager · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review title: Stewardship manual for planet Earth

When you think of Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon of the 1960s, you think of civil rights and the Vietnam War, Apollo moon landings and Watergate. You don't think of environmentalism. Douglas Brinkley flips that view in his long study setting the context for this "Third Wave" conversationism (after Theodore and then Franklin Roosevelt) within the post-war era of Rachel Carson and the anti-nuke movement.

I picked this up off the new book shelf at my local public library, and while I knew Rachel Carson was born in western Pennsylvania nearby, I was surprised to learn how many other central figures in the late 20th century environmentalism movement also had roots here. While the Allegheny Mountains lack the altitude and the stunning sharp peaks of the Rocky Mountains, the hills, streams, woodlands and wildlife here provide a great outdoor introduction to the beauty and worth of nature. Sadly they also provide a window into the fragility of nature. Brinkley cites the 1946 Donora smog, that killed 20 residents of a steel town when a temperature inversion trapped poisonous air in the small town in a narrow valley of the Monongahela River, as one of the founding events of the new conservation movement. In the midst of the American presumption of perpetual progress and the ascendancy of technology and industry, "the Donora incident for the first time established a clear link between air pollution and disease, or even death in America." (p. 35)

Brinkley, who has previously written volumes on the conservationism of the two Roosevelts (among several other histories and biographies), also links the threads of civil rights, anti-nuclear activism, wilderness preservation, and "hook-and-bullet" conservation into the new "environmentalism". While Rachel Carson's popular 1950s and early 1960s books on the sea coasts and the animal life it harbors, and then on the dangers of overused and dangerous pesticides in her classic Silent Spring (confession: I haven't read it yet but it is on my reading wish list now) provided the scientific and literary context for the modern movement, it was the less well-known integration of these different threads that I found most interesting in Brinkley's account. The activists who opposed atmospheric atomic testing in the 1960s "spoke in terms of the interdependent components of nature and the irreversible damage that atomic bombs can do to planet Earth." (p. 85). And Martin Luther King, Jr., speaking in 1959, the year I was born, "asked a question that was an opening salvo for the merging of the peace, civil rights, and environmental movements of the 1960s: 'What will be the ultimate value of having established social justice in a context where all people, Negro and White, are merely free to face destruction by strontium 90 or atomic war?' " (p. 153)

Thoreau and Whitman in the 19th century, John Muir--partnering with Roosevelt--in the early years of the 20th, and Carl Sandberg later, provided philosophical grounding for environmental advocacy, which others expanded to embrace the Biblical admonition to act as human stewards of divine creation. Ansel Adams, the renowned nature photographer, said at a 1961 Sierra Club conference, "We have the vast and luminous evidence of God in the realities of the cosmos in which we live." (p. 204). Thoreau himself in 1837 said to the Harvard graduating class "This curious world which we inhabit is more wonderful than it is convenient, more beautiful than it is useful. It is more to be admired than to be used." (p. 207). One hundred and fifty years later Barry Commoner wrote, uniting science with stewardship, "the proper use of science is not to conquer nature, but to live within its scope." (p. 554). About the same time Russell Train, appointed by Nixon to an environmental role in his administration, broadened the scope of the Bible's Golden Rule to "include the whole community of this Earth,all the living things--and inanimate as well--and we damage that extraordinary structure at our Peril." (p. 555).

Of course, in a democracy translating philosophy and spiritual admonition into action is a political activity, and as is clear from this book's subtitle Brinkley spent much time writing about that. But what is surprising given the polarization of today's politics is in this previous era the support for environmental action came from men and women across the spectrum, from both parties and from many states. Certainly one would be hard pressed to think of leaders more disparate in style and public perception than the young charismatic New Englander Kennedy, the gruff and rough West Texas political brawler Johnson, and the cynical and bitter Nixon. Yet Brinkley shows how each spent valuable political capital to advocate for and accomplish difficult environmental goals, even if their activism was overshadowed by the Cold War (Kennedy), civil rights and Vietnam (Johnson), and Watergate and Vietnam (Nixon), and even if they weren't given credit. Johnson "never won awards from the Sierra Club or the National Audubon Society" (p. 561), and the combative Nixon, through no fault of his own, presided over the 1974 energy crisis brought on by the OPEC oil embargo that "put the Silent Spring revolutionaries on the defensive for the first time since JFK had assumed the presidency in 1961" (p. 659). Yet Nixon pushed for and enforced the National Environmental Policy Act of 1970 establishing the EPA, a policy that fifty years later had proven its worth by serving as the model for 160 other countries. (p. 589)

Even within the environmental movement there were differences of interest, philosophy, and priority, which Brinkley does a good job of documenting. Broadly speaking, as defined for example in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1964, there were "recreational [uses] . . . which might have limited development . . . ; scenic, which were undeveloped but accessible by road ; and, most precious of all, wild . . . 'generally inaccessible except by trail.' " (p. 529). These competing interests were sometimes negotiated peaceably between interest groups, regions, and political parties, but often involved bruising battles of personality, publicity, and political log rolling. Rachel Carson, the central figure for Brinkley and the one best suited for secular sainthood, herself recognized this reality: "I am sure history will record that the conservationists, far from being sentimentalists, were the tough-minded realists, facing the issues that must be faced today." (p. 312)

The February 2023 hazardous materials spill and aftermath of the East Palestine, Ohio train wreck which happened as I read this book illustrates the wisdom and relevance of Carson's comment 60 years earlier. Politicians and political parties have tried to win votes and cast blame from the incident. In his conclusion Brinkley writes: "Up until 1980, environmentalism was bipartisan. That all changed with Reagan. The pragmatic, problem-solving, wilderness-loving wing of the Republican Party disappeared overnight. It became fashionable to attack serious environmentalists as socialist fools. " (p. 668). Perhaps so, but what the Silent Spring Revolution showed us is that the air we breathe and the water we drink

-matters intensely (just ask those nearby and down-wind of East Palestine),
-can be made toxic by man's technology,
-can and must be cleaned up by man's government, and
-those responsible for the damage can be held liable and accountable.

Those are hard-fought and hard-won victories in the revolution toward proper stewardship of our divine gift of creation.

Brinkley has written an interesting narrative easily accessible to the interest lay reader, backed by voluminous research and interviews with many of the participants in the revolution. The pictures, notes, bibliography, and appendices listing, parks and wildlife refuges and protection provided by the three presidents add to the scholarly veracity and research value of the book.

[August Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silent Spring Revolution is a towering achievement for Douglas Brinkley which immediately takes its place as a key text on the history of the environmental movement. It elevates Rachel Carson (and her seminal Silent Spring) to the near-sainthood status that she deserves, as well as myriad titans of the long-60s environmental awakening like Interior Secretary Stewart Udall, Sierra Club President David Brower, and the Supreme Court's "Green Justice" William Douglas. While I haven't read Brinkley's first two books in his environmental trilogy, I didn't feel that impacted my experience with SSR at all.

Brinkley has long ago proven his status as a master historian of America's 20th century and he has taken on a cultural significance himself with work like serving as Hunter S. Thompson's literary executor. I can hardly begin to imagine the volumes of research undertaken by Brinkley's team to put together this nearly 700-page tome (followed by another 200 pages of appendices and notes), but Brinkley shines when ink meets paper, expertly chronicling in-the-weeds policy battles to pass landmark bills like the Wilderness Act of 1964 and the Clean Water/Air Acts, designate national parks, ban DDT, and numerous others.

While he does give plenty of space to the tapestry of the environmental movement (activists, protestors, writers, etc), Brinkley, a presidential historian by trade, does hone in on presidents and their impacts. Beginning with the Truman years and running through the Nixon administration, Brinkley captures a country waking up to the environmental degradation it has wrought.

Truman and Eisenhower are both portrayed as without much interest in conservation work, while Kennedy is highlighted as having a lifetime interest in the environment, being moved by Silent Spring, and having a would-be epic environmental legacy cut short. LBJ carried Kennedy's torch (and even kept on his dogged Interior Secretary Stewart Udall) and was himself an outdoorsman of the rugged rancher variety; he piled up a formidable legacy with national park designation and the 1964 Wilderness Act, but was ultimately undone by the Vietnam War (which was an environmental disaster on top of everything else). Finally, the ever-enigmatic Nixon put up a remarkable legacy himself (founding the EPA, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, banning DDT, cleaning up the Great Lakes), though it's arguable much of this got its start in the Johnson years and probable Nixon signed some of this to try and steal the environmental issue from Democrats.

If there's something you're interested in from the long '60s environmental movement, it's almost certainly in this book. For example, as a Wisconsinite, I particularly appreciated Gaylord Nelson's hero treatment and the details of his years-long effort to protect our Apostle Islands.

[John Szalasny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent homage to the legacy of Rachel Carson in the 60th anniversary of Silent Spring. It's easy to overlook that her previous books (Under the Sea-Wind, published in 1941. The Sea Around Us (1951) won a National Book Award, and The Edge of the Sea (1955) gave her the street creds to be able to kick start appreciation of the natural world in accessibly readable works. So, it should not be surprising that the work of Silent Spring, as controversial as it was to the industrial complex, found a receptive readership. And in the days before science and politics became enemies, Silent Spring also found champions that brought the message to Presidents Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon. Each of the presidents had their own unique view on what environmentalism was, but each was committed (either by conviction or circumstance) to bring forward the baseline environmental protections that we have in this country.

Equally engaging are the stories of the work of the men behind the presidents, like Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall, Supreme Court Justice William Douglas, farm labor leader Cesar Chavez, and Sierra Club director David Brower. Without them, the cause of environmental protection may have withered on the vine.

It was inspiring to hear that there was a time in our history when action on something important could get done in a bi-partisan fashion. The 60's moonshot gets all of the press in this regard but the environmental movement that spawned things like the Environmental Protection Agency and the Clean Air Act should share the spotlight. It also gives me hope that we can once again find the political will to move ahead in a similar fashion to resolve our transition to clean energy and combat the effects of the past 200 years of burning fossil fuels.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating, important look at the environmental movement, as it moves from TR’s brand of conservatism (national parks and species preservation) to embracing the entirety of ecosystems. As Brinkley chronicles, the movement had its roots in Thoreau's writings, and really evolved in the 1950s and 1960s as the public saw chemical dumping in rivers, smokestack pollution, river damming, off shore oil drilling, car exhaust, atom bomb testing, nuclear reactors, clear cutting and DDT poisioning -- much of it aimed at minority populations. The bulk of this highly readable book's 800 pages focus on the environmental actions of presidential administrations from Truman (who was unconcerned with the environment), through Nixon, along with the rise of various environmental groups (i.e Sierra Club) and key players, such as Justice William Douglass, Stewart Udall, and, surprisingly, Martin Luther King. Many, many bases are covered in this broad review-- the author sometimes relies on snapshots, and he occasionally trips on the multitude of stories involved. Moreover, to read Brinkley is to understand that he is infatuated with the Kennedys (see also his otherwise excellent book on the space race). But Brinkley is also good/fair with LBJ and even Nixon, who added to Kennedy's building blocks as it became politically expedient to do so. This is quite a book!

[Alec · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my bachelors degrees is in Environmental and Sustainability Studies, so it goes without saying that I’m interested in the topic. Since graduating though, I haven’t been immersed in environmentalism. Reading Silent Spring Revolution was like seeing a dam break: first a few cracks, then an interminable silence. And then the flood. Memories of camping in Robinson Forest in southeastern Kentucky or washing reusable utensils in public restrooms flooded me, and I couldn’t help but feel nostalgic for my anxiety-ridden college years.

Silent Spring Revolution has plenty to offer those who did not major in environmental studies as well. Douglas Brinkley details the U.S. environmentalism from before the Kennedy years through the Nixon presidency, and Lord, is he meticulous. So many dam protests, so many court cases, so many activists representing different ideas and identities—everyone except for the most knowledgeable history buffs will have something to learn from the book. My eyes glazed over at the details at times, but he does a good job of keeping the story going. He could have done for another round of line edits, but still a great.