It is a book of hauntingly poignant poems about the stark beauty relating to the many aspects of nature, relationships, and life found in northwestern Wisconsin. And the foundation beneath it all is love.

Over a century ago, stopping places dotted northwestern Wisconsin and provided relaxation, accommodations, and food as well as fodder and water for horses and oxen on the tote road from St. Croix Falls to Bayfield, Wisconsin. "Toting" is the term used to describe the hauling of goods or freight by oxen and wagon. Tote roads were the roads created in the early history of the area which provided a way for freight to be transported to and from lumber camps and small settlements.The long trip made stopping places necessary. Generally, most early stopping places in the nineteenth century in northwestern Wisconsin were primitive and crowded boarding places built and utilized by lumber companies. To the Woods: Lumberjacks and Stopping Places in Northwestern Wisconsin reviews many of these places as well as the interesting men and women who operated them.

Every American has heard of the lumberjack hero Paul Bunyan and his big blue ox. For 100 years his exploits filled cartoons, magazines, short stories, and children's books, and his name advertised everything from pancake breakfasts to construction supplies. By 1950 Bunyan was a ubiquitous icon of America's strength and ingenuity. Until now, no one knew where he came from—and the extent to which this mythical hero is rooted in Wisconsin. Out of the Northwoods presents the culture of nineteenth-century lumberjacks in their own words. It includes eyewitness accounts of how the first Bunyan stories were shared on frigid winter nights, around logging camp stoves, in the Wisconsin pinery. It describes where the tales began, how they moved out of the forest and into print, and why publication changed them forever. Part bibliographic mystery and part social history, Out of the Northwoods explains for the first time why we all know and love Paul Bunyan.

An all-purpose field guide covering the North Woods of the upper Midwest, beginning with a detailed geological history of the region, then moving to a description of the nine typical plant communities and details of the region's abundant wildlife, before becoming a guide to public lands for the recreationist and vacationer.

Scenic rural communities across the nation and around the world have been transformed as they have shifted away from extractive industries such as agriculture, mining, and forestry and toward recreation-based development relying on tourism, vacation homes, and retirees. These communities have built new economies and identities based on local natural resources and are highly dependent on the natural environment. With these changes have come new questions: Do retirees and seasonal residents fit into their new surroundings? Do longtime and new residents share the same values and visions for the future? Do diverse community members disagree about how to manage their forest and water resources? Condos in the Woods explores how these issues are reshaping community structure, employment, and inhabitants' attitudes toward their environment in the Northwoods. Looking at trends from the 1970s to the present, this work moves from the national scale to the Pine Barrens region in northwestern Wisconsin and examines the approaches of residents to the management of their natural resources. At the heart of this story, the authors find that despite the diverse makeup of such communities, residents share many common goals and values and display more successful integration than previously expected. "Makes a major contribution linking and expanding beyond an array of research on the question: What does the growing dominance of seasonal home ownership and use mean for the communities of northern Wisconsin?"—Susan I. Stewart, USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station