Big Coal

New York Times-Bestselling Author:"e;Should be ready by anyone who owns a microwave, or an iPod, or a table lamp, which is to say everyone."e; -Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sixth ExtinctionA Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the YearCoal is still a significant source of power in the United States and coal mining is still a deadly and environmentally destructive industry. Much of the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere each year comes from coal-fired power plants, and in recent decades air pollution from coal plants has killed more than half a million Americans. In this eye-opening call to action, Jeff Goodell explains the costs and consequences of America's addiction to coal and discusses how we can kick the habit. "e;[A] compelling indictment . . . powerful."e; The New York Times Book Review"e;Goodell's description of the mining-related deaths, the widespread health consequences of burning coal and the impact on our planet's increasingly fragile ecosystem make for compelling reading, but . . . are not what lift this book out of the ordinary. That distinction belongs to Goodell's fieldwork, which takes him to Atlanta, West Virginia, Wyoming, China and beyond."e; Publishers Weekly (starred review)"e;Goodell does a first-rate job of balancing environmental concerns with interviews from the human faces associated with 'Big Coal'."e; Library Journal