Garbage Land: On the Secret Trail of Trash

GARBAGELAND JM-3

This book probably taught me more about garbage than I have leaned about math in calculus this year. Nearly every trash related question I have ever had was answered in this book. The book is full of facts that would probably be considered boring if presented the wrong way, but mixed with Royte's humor and her journey, this book was as fun to read as any fiction I have read. She goes to almost every sort of trash and waste related area, building, or center and finds out the most interesting things about the cycle of trash. There was no area that was left uncovered. Weather it was what happens to Christmas trees, incineration, or how long some pieces of trash can survive in a dump, she throughly explained the pros and cons of every aspect of waste. I good and informative book.

Garbage is so interesting

This is a fascinating and well-written story about the waste management process in the U.S. The book touches on landfills, composting, recycling, and much more and draws together Royte's mass amount of research with a solid storyline about the author trying to track her own trash and limit her personal waste stream. I bought this book to read because I am very interested in recycling and thought this would further enlighten me. Now I'm obsessed with garbage too. I'm starting my Masters in Environmental Policy next semester and now I want to focus on garbage because it's so interesting. Waste disposal is an issue in all societies and it will never cease to exist - therefore everyone should read this book.

A reviewer

After you read an inconvenient truth track your personal garbage and find more ways to improve on recycling and buying.Went to a recycling talk with the author,walmart and recycling businesses and she was an excellent speaker and I got my book signed!

Well written. Poorly attributed

This is an important book about a topic that will only grow more present in the national debate in the coming years. The United States creates an enormous amount of garbage and the writer takes us to the places few of us acutally see or even think about in order to make us aware of the gargantuan nature of the disposal problem. Her adventures in visiting the various stages of the trail her garbage takes from her home in NYC to a landfill in Pennsylvania are sometimes harrowing and often amusing. Some of her throwaway comments about the situation and the statistics she uses need direct attribution since they are not necessarily widely accepted, particularly by the waste management industry. Overall an excellent story told by a gifted writer.

Riveting

This is a remarkable book - a great read, and at the same time thick with information everyone ought to know, but doesn't. How is it that we're allowed to be so ignorant of what happens to the great piles of trash we all create (in the US)? Royte's dogma-free narrative doesn't force any conclusions - but is thoroughly stimulating. I'm recommending it to anyone who will listen.

A MUST READ FOR EVERYONE!

An important and well written book. It will change the way you look at trash forever and hopefully spure us to change our wasteful habits.

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