Bretz's Flood: The Remarkable Story of a Rebel Geologist and the World's Greatest Flood
by John Soennichsen

Summary

Maverick scientist Bretz became fascinated with the "channeled scablands:" a unique landscape of basalt cliffs, dry waterfalls and coulees in eastern Washington and Idaho. The more he and his students explored the area, the more certain he became that conventional wisdom was wrong. In response, the scientific community attacked Bretz both professionally and personally.

Only decades later would satellite photos confirm what Bretz' painstaking investigation had unearthed: that these landforms had been created in a flash by a flood on a scale so enormous, it had been beyond the imagination of conventional scientific wisdom. Bretz's Flood tells an exciting story of an epic mystery of the western landscape, and how one geologist, using old-fashioned methods of measurement, observation, and scientific deduction, figured out what everyone else had failed to see, and persevered against the odds to change the course of geologic history.

Praise

"One of the best scientific whodunits of recent years" — Book News

"Balances lively anecdote with solid scientific fact to make this an engaging and informative read." — The Bellingham Herald

"J Harlen Bretz was an unusual geologist: more than a maverick-turned-icon, more than a conscientious and thorough field worker, and more than a demanding professor, he also had a remarkable sense of humor and the strength to persevere despite professional obloquy. Author Soennichsen ... delivers a vivid portrait ... [and] explores a fascinating life in science" — Publishers Weekly

About the Author

John Soennichsen is the author of Live! from Death Valley and Bretz's Flood: The Remarkable Story of a Rebel Geologist and the World's Greatest Flood. He works as a free-lance writer and lives near Cheney, Washington.

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