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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The California Field Atlas | 3/4 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_California_Field_Atlas | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T08:37:51.144541+00:00 | kb-cron |
He saw the Field Atlas as having two main purposes: a scientific agenda to foster geographic literacy, and an artistic agenda to promote the cause of conservation—the latter of which also has political dimensions. He told the website 7x7 that the "whole book—this whole endeavor—is an exercise in how we can continue our human residency in California not only over the next 100 years, for example, but over the next 10,000 years." On the other hand, Kaufmann sought to avoid any overt political argumentation in the book, and he has expressed frustration with partisan approaches to conservation. Mike Sonksen identified the book—particularly its ecological perspective and sense of "geographic literacy"—with the ideas of deep ecology and bioregionalism as articulated by Kaufmann's influence Gary Snyder in such works as Turtle Island (1974) and A Place in Space (1995). The book reflects a deep-time perspective on the state's ecology and landscapes. In the book's introduction, Kaufmann wrote that he was "participating in the wild reimagining of the place, past the scars inflicted over the past two hundred years and revealing a story about what has always been here and what will remain long after our residency is through." In an interview, he cited the Klamath River, which he said "will be here a thousand years from now, long after all of our roads have returned to dust from which they are made. That sort of deep-time perspective is the aspect of California that I am so drawn to create and participate in." As a comment on nature's capacity for long-term resilience and endurance, he noted elsewhere that the "redwood tree's toolbox allows it to live for 2,000 years. What calamities would you encounter if you lived that long?" He omits the environmental impacts of human activity, including roads and urban settings, from his maps and illustrations. Paul Saffo noted that, although humans are not entirely absent, "the Field Atlas exhibits a certain ambiguity regarding the human presence in California ... one cannot escape the sense that Kaufmann would be happier if everyone who headed toward California after 1530 had turned back." While it excludes roads, the book does include some trail maps. Kaufmann said trails "offer so much more of an interesting ecological narrative" than roads because they follow topographical contours and natural features like streams, and the book's attention to trails reflects a "pedestrian ethic". The maps are not designed as navigational guides for the California wilderness areas, and it is especially not intended as "help if you're lost in the woods". Kaufmann has noted that the book weighs 2 pounds (0.91 kg), making it somewhat impractical to carry on hikes. Instead, he advised readers to use it for planning excursions or the contemplation of conservation efforts. He also advised taking the book on road trips through the state, noting that it could easily fit inside a car's glove compartment.
== Release ==
The field atlas was first published in September 2017. Kaufmann undertook a promotional tour of California and the West Coast, which coincided with the 2017 California wildfires. He spoke about the impact of the wildfires and the resilience of nature at several events while promoting the Field Atlas. To Kaufmann's surprise, the book sold well and became a regional bestseller. The first printing of the book, totaling 8,000 copies, sold out before the book was even released and became Heyday's best-selling first printing in its more than four decades of publishing. With high demand and limited availability, used copies of the book, which retailed for $45, were sold online for prices ranging from $145 to $1,500. The second printing produced 6,000 copies in mid-January, and was sold out by February; a third printing became available the same month. The book spent four weeks in the number 1 spot on the San Francisco Chronicle bestseller list for nonfiction paperbacks. More than four years after the book's first publication, a hardcover "Deluxe Edition" was released through Heyday in November 2020.