A breathtaking portrait of Alabama rivers

From their primal seepages in the Appalachian highlands or along the broad Chunnenuggee Hills, Alabama’s rivers carve through the rocky uplands and down the Fall Line rapids, then ease across the coastal plain to their eventual confluence with the Gulf of Mexico.

 

Beth Maynor Young’s 155 full-color photographs constitute art through a lens; the colors, the light, and the angles all converge for a tender praise of her subject. Her stunning visuals are supported by tantalizing captions and introductory text from John C. Hall, a master field trip leader. Together, they tell a proud story of the native beauty and complexity of these Alabama watercourses that shepherd fully 20% of the nation’s fresh water to sea.

 

The intimate close-up of verdant mosses or pebbled beaches pulls one into their space just as surely as does a sweeping scene of a watershed valley or a sparkling sunset over water. We all become eager listeners and observers on this guided “paddle to the Gulf,” drinking in the peace, delight, and beauty offered by the experience. At the end, we know we won’t be the same as before beginning the journey.

 

In addition to being a celebration of their richness, Headwaters serves as a call to greater stewardship of these riverine resources. Conservation sidebars describe the current efforts in this direction and encourage further study and protection. This book tells us, in glorious color and instructive word, why we’ll always treasure these wonderful rivers.

Beth Maynor Young is an accomplished conservation photographer who has spent much of her life chronicling the natural beauty and remnant wild places of the contemporary South. Visit Beth's website at: http://www.cahabariverpublishing.com.

 

John C. Hall is Curator of the Black Belt Museum, University of West Alabama, Livingston, Alabama, and former Chief of Natural History at The University of Alabama Museum of Natural History.

 

Rick Middleton is Founder and Executive Director of the Southern Environmental Law Center, with offices in Alabama, Georgia, Tennesee, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

“This book pulls together and fuses two great resources—Beth Young’s beautiful photographs and John Hall’s lifetime love of (and stories about) Alabama’s natural heritage . . . and its sheer beauty will inspire people to explore the state for themselves.”

—Larry Davenport, Samford University

“WOW! What a wonderful body of work. Beth has captured the essence of the location with composition, light, and timing. I enjoyed the personality of the text throughout and found it to be the right blend of information and entertainment . . . Kudos to the creators.”

—Marc Muench, co-creator of American Portfolios, The Rockies, and Our National Parks

“This is a great book, well organized [with] a very good flow. Beth’s images are exquisite . . . and the quotes with each image are good surprises.”

—Chip Cooper, photographer of Common Threads and A Mansion’s Memories