NONFICTION - July 28, 1991

THE REDISCOVERY OF NORTH AMERICA by Barry Lopez (University Press of Kentucky: $15; unpaged). When Columbus’ discovery of America is commemorated next year, a gulf as vast as the one the explorer crossed in 1492 will separate celebrants from mourners. It is unlikely that Barry Lopez, one of the mourners, will bridge that gap, for his dreamy writing style leaves him open to attack by more pragmatic-minded celebrants: When he demands an end to the deforestation in Oregon, for instance (“ enough , it is enough”), celebrants no doubt will respond, “Sure, but where did you get the paper to print all of your books?” But while these pages might be short on logical arguments, they eloquently proffer a philosophy of limits that we cannot afford to ignore in this era of global warming and overpopulation.