Rating: 
Summary: Brightest New Mexico?
Review: Abbey's western tale takes place in "brightest New Mexico" on a ranch where Grandfather John Vogelin has lived and worked for seventy years. He is a tough, old man who abhors progress. Vogelin longs for the day when "civilization will collapse and everything will go back to normal." His "little kingdom" is threatened when the U.S. government's Defense Department files a Declaration of Taking on his land. According to the Deputy Marshall, this land is needed for the expansion of the White Sands Missile Range. With the help of Billy Starr, Vogelin's grandson who spends his summers at the ranch, and Lee Mackie, a long-time friend of Vogelin's, the old man is determined to the retain his property. Vogelin declares war on the United States government, and is forcibly evicted from his land. After being removed from his home, Grandfather Vogelin escapes to his cabin on Thieves Mountain where he passes away. Lee and Billy give Vogelin a Viking burial, creating the "fire on the mountain." Vogelin has made good on his claim to die on his land before it can be taken away. Abbey has emboldened the oft-written about "wild west" with a new spirit. This story of individualism provides the reader with a sense of indignation. Does the government really have the right to take away land that has been in your family for almost a century to strengthen national security or for any other reason? Government officials claim national security takes precedence over private property rights. Abbey seems to disagree by creating a character who will kill the "first man who lays a hand" on his house and is willing to die in the process of saving his land. Abbey then takes the argument further by asking who really owns that land. Is it the man with the currently valid title? Is it the man who stole it last? Vogelin's family took the land from Native Americans a century ago. Is the government just continuing this cycle? Should the land go to the one who wins the fight for possession? Abbey then proposes a very intriguing question: can land really be owned? Vogelin proclaims that this "God forsook baked-out over-grazed non-profit-making parcel of dust and cactus" is not property; rather, it is his home and his life. These arguments are as applicable today as they were in the 1960's when "Fire on the Mountain" was written. Are we stewards of the earth? Do we have a right to fence in our land and change it to suit our needs without consideration for our neighbors, wildlife and plants? Abbey argues what Leopold did in 1949 in "A Sand County Almanac." Both urge the reader to consider his or her place in the land-community as a member not a conqueror. Abbey accomplishes this with a controversial story line and beautiful prose. Just as Billy is enthralled with "the crystal stasis of the long deep desert afternoon", the reader is captivated by Abbey's description of New Mexican wilderness. We, too, must ask: "Is heaven better than this place?" "Fire on the Mountain" is a thoroughly enjoyable and insightful novel. One of its best characteristics is Abbey's breathtaking description of New Mexico's landscapes. As he did in "Desert Solitaire" Abbey allows the reader to see through his written words into the vast wild west. In addition, the story-line encourages the reader to rethink his or her idea of property and land ownership. This thought-provoking novel is a must read for any environmentalist. Edward Abbey is hailed as an underground cult hero of the west and father of the new environmental movement. He was born in Home, Pennsylvania, in 1927, and spent most of his life in the Southwest. An advocate of the preservation of the American wilderness, Abbey has also written "The Monkey Wrench Gang" and the non-fiction "Desert Solitaire." "Fire on the Mountain" was written in 1962 and published by Clarke Abbey.
Rating:
Summary: Brightest New Mexico?
Review: Abbey's western tale takes place in "brightest New Mexico" on a ranch where Grandfather John Vogelin has lived and worked for seventy years. He is a tough, old man who abhors progress. Vogelin longs for the day when "civilization will collapse and everything will go back to normal." His "little kingdom" is threatened when the U.S. government's Defense Department files a Declaration of Taking on his land. According to the Deputy Marshall, this land is needed for the expansion of the White Sands Missile Range. With the help of Billy Starr, Vogelin's grandson who spends his summers at the ranch, and Lee Mackie, a long-time friend of Vogelin's, the old man is determined to the retain his property. Vogelin declares war on the United States government, and is forcibly evicted from his land. After being removed from his home, Grandfather Vogelin escapes to his cabin on Thieves Mountain where he passes away. Lee and Billy give Vogelin a Viking burial, creating the "fire on the mountain." Vogelin has made good on his claim to die on his land before it can be taken away. Abbey has emboldened the oft-written about "wild west" with a new spirit. This story of individualism provides the reader with a sense of indignation. Does the government really have the right to take away land that has been in your family for almost a century to strengthen national security or for any other reason? Government officials claim national security takes precedence over private property rights. Abbey seems to disagree by creating a character who will kill the "first man who lays a hand" on his house and is willing to die in the process of saving his land. Abbey then takes the argument further by asking who really owns that land. Is it the man with the currently valid title? Is it the man who stole it last? Vogelin's family took the land from Native Americans a century ago. Is the government just continuing this cycle? Should the land go to the one who wins the fight for possession? Abbey then proposes a very intriguing question: can land really be owned? Vogelin proclaims that this "God forsook baked-out over-grazed non-profit-making parcel of dust and cactus" is not property; rather, it is his home and his life. These arguments are as applicable today as they were in the 1960's when "Fire on the Mountain" was written. Are we stewards of the earth? Do we have a right to fence in our land and change it to suit our needs without consideration for our neighbors, wildlife and plants? Abbey argues what Leopold did in 1949 in "A Sand County Almanac." Both urge the reader to consider his or her place in the land-community as a member not a conqueror. Abbey accomplishes this with a controversial story line and beautiful prose. Just as Billy is enthralled with "the crystal stasis of the long deep desert afternoon", the reader is captivated by Abbey's description of New Mexican wilderness. We, too, must ask: "Is heaven better than this place?" "Fire on the Mountain" is a thoroughly enjoyable and insightful novel. One of its best characteristics is Abbey's breathtaking description of New Mexico's landscapes. As he did in "Desert Solitaire" Abbey allows the reader to see through his written words into the vast wild west. In addition, the story-line encourages the reader to rethink his or her idea of property and land ownership. This thought-provoking novel is a must read for any environmentalist. Edward Abbey is hailed as an underground cult hero of the west and father of the new environmental movement. He was born in Home, Pennsylvania, in 1927, and spent most of his life in the Southwest. An advocate of the preservation of the American wilderness, Abbey has also written "The Monkey Wrench Gang" and the non-fiction "Desert Solitaire." "Fire on the Mountain" was written in 1962 and published by Clarke Abbey.
Rating:
Summary: A story of strength and simplicity
Review: Fire on the Mountain is an inspiring story about a rancher in New Mexico who is trying to prevent the US gov't from laying claim to his land. Thru the voice of a 12yo grandson who is visiting for the summer, the novel comes vividly alive with desert descriptions of cottonwoods, riverbeds, and sunsets. The beautiful and emerging give-and-take relationship betw grandfather and grandson lends force to an already strong tale.
Abbey is known as the father of the environmental movement, a label he didn't much like. He preferred to call himself 'an agrarian anarchist.' If you like his other books and his exquisite writing style, don't miss this one.
Rating:
Summary: The truth of New Mexico
Review: Fire on the Mountain very vividly describes the actual landscapes and realities of New Mexico. The characters enviroment plays an effective role regulating how the family responds to their hardships and obstacles. The book is very well written and based off a true story that is heroic in its own way. I highly recommend this book to a person who likes a book based on reality yet offers adventure while describing such desolate areas and making them come to life.
Rating:
Summary: The truth of New Mexico
Review: Fire on the Mountain very vividly describes the actual landscapes and realities of New Mexico. The characters enviroment plays an effective role regulating how the family responds to their hardships and obstacles. The book is very well written and based off a true story that is heroic in its own way. I highly recommend this book to a person who likes a book based on reality yet offers adventure while describing such desolate areas and making them come to life.
Rating:
Summary: A Philosophic Precursor to the Monkeywrench Gang
Review: For all those who have read Abbey's famous work Desert Solitaire and other non fiction Fire on the Mountain is a great introduction to his fiction. First published in 1962 it marks Abbey's early attempts to confront some of the environmental and social problems resulting from humanity's alienation from nature and the land. Abbey based his plot around actual events in which a New Mexico rancher named John Prather fought government attempts to confiscate his land to make it part of the White Sands Missle Range. Considering the time when this book was written, following the era of McCarthyism and the onset of the Cold War, Abbey was especially bold in putting forth the philosophical preposition that an individual has a moral and ethical responsibilty to protect the land against its despoilers, whether corporate entities or even the US government. In detailing one person's struggle against the seemingly invincible forces of power that the government represents, Abbey was attempting to illustrate that, indeed, one person's strugglecan make a difference. Given Abbey's extention of this line of thought and further development in The Monkeywrech Gang the intimate relationship between the two novels seems apparent. The ideas presented in Fire on the Mountain, thus, are central to understanding Abbey's subsequent works, both his fiction and non fiction, which are all bound by his belief that the essential tenent for human society must be respect for the environment and a duty to protect the natural diversity of life. As Abbey often said the land is owned by all and no one.
Rating: 
Summary: Fire on the Mountain
Review: John Vogelin is an old rancher that lives in New Mexico. His land adjoins the White Sands Missile Range of the U.S. Air Force. When he is told that he has to move from his home, which is now on private government property, he refuses to do so. He is not about to leave his entire life behind so that it can become a site to test missiles. The story shows how easily the government can make someone not exist, and heard them off their land like the cattle that graze there. They say it is a threat to National Security and that his duty as a citizen of the United States of America should be in the best nature of the land he lives on. With the help of his young grandson and a hired farm hand. Vogelin attempts to hold of the governments legal and military power. Edward Abbey beautifully describes the landscape of the mountains of new Mexico. It seems as if the reader were there in that fierce heat along with them. "In that vivid light each rock and tree and cloud and mountain existed with a kind of force and clarity that seemed not natural but supernatural." This story does not read like typical western. It seems to have more of a present day tense to it. There is the introduction of many of the government agents and military officers that give the story a more complex plot. The book is a good experience for those who are not familiar with the southwestern part of this country, and how people live their days. And it makes this a great book for anyone that is a western fan.
Rating: 
Summary: Thought Provoking
Review: This book is an early example of Abbey's writings about fierce individualism. This book, along with "Desert Solitaire" and "Fool's Progress" depict a desire to return to days when people were much more independent. This book, while being 30 years old, is still relevant. Where should we draw the line between governement and citizens? Abbey did an excellent job with this book.
Rating:
Summary: Thought Provoking
Review: This book is an early example of Abbey's writings about fierce individualism. This book, along with "Desert Solitaire" and "Fool's Progress" depict a desire to return to days when people were much more independent. This book, while being 30 years old, is still relevant. Where should we draw the line between governement and citizens? Abbey did an excellent job with this book.
Rating:
Summary: a southwestern classic
Review: this is a story about how the southwest was violated by the atomic age. but that's not what makes it so good. it's strength is the amazing writing style of early abbey. it reminds one of stephan crane and high noon. you can feel the heat in the organ mountains in summer. you can smell the sage brush. read edward abbey at his best!
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