Clearcut Danger

Alice Kidd is an editor with The New Catalyst editorial collective in
Lillooet, B.C.

It can be difficult to write a good, realistic story about an
ideological debate. Clearcut Danger is about the conflicts that arise
when a pulp and paper mill is proposed for a small town with a depressed
economy. The young hero, Ryan Cooper, initially sees possible jobs for
his father and himself in the mill, but his girlfriend, Alana, is
worried about damage to the land and the harbor, and especially worried
about the damage to sacred Micmac land. These two find themselves and
their families in hot water as a result of voicing their concerns. How
they proceed and what happens make for a very exciting story.

This excellent book deals with real things: high-school scenes, family
scenes, scenes on a protest line. It deals with typical modern issues:
parent-child relations, Native-white relations, dying towns and failing
resources, economic versus spiritual values. The characters are
well-rounded individuals complete with doubts and inconsistencies. The
climax and conclusion are extremely plausible.

The book serves a second purpose. Alana and Ryan are an engaging couple
of teenagers. Presented with a problem, they try several ways of solving
it: they try to clarify their own wants and needs; they try to find out
more about the issues by consulting family, teachers, and friends; they
do some research work on their own. Meanwhile their lives continue to
present them with other problems that must be solved. The key point is
that they keep going, and in doing so provide excellent role models for
day-to-day living. Highly recommended.