Abstract

In the era of Trump and alternative facts, here is a book on facts, counterfacts, and fi ctions relating to the development of Canada’s oil sands. Th e book is a complex mixture of literature, art, science, engineering, politics, Great Plains anthropology, and indigenous peoples, woven together into an oft en diffi culttoread text on the environment, energy, and economy trilemma our civilization faces. The book challenged my scientist’s literary skills and vocabulary; it is not a quick read, but I emerged wiser, if at times confused, by the direction the book was heading. Nevertheless, the book introduced me to a large volume of literature, poetry, and other materials on oil sands and associated topics that I was simply unaware existed. Overall, it was enjoyable to read, even if very hard work to get into at the start. Th e only book I have read previously that came close to this level of entangled complexity was Douglas Hofstadter’s Gödel, Escher, Bach epic. Th at was an easier book to read! In a nutshell, through an analysis of a multitude of literary, media, technical, and other resources, Gordon seeks to fi nd the role that literature can play in fi nding a route for society through the oil sands environment, energy, and economy trilemma. Th ough focused on oil Heads Above Water: Th e Inside Story of the Edwards Aquifer Recovery Implementation Program. By Robert L. Gulley. Foreword by Andrew Sansom. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2015. xx + 226. Map, appendix, notes, index. $29.95 cloth.