This treatise argues that the American West serves as a testament to a dependence upon water as the "shaping force" of a region's history and development. It defines the West as a "modern hydraulic society" dependent on man-made systems of irrigation such as dams, irrigation ditches and canals.

Acknowledgements I. Introduction: Reflections in a Ditch II. Taxonomy: The Flow of Power in History III. Incipience: A Poor Man's Paradise IV. Florescence: The State and the Desert V. Florescence: The Grapes of Wealth VI. Empire: Water and the Modern West VII. Conclusion: Nature, Freedom, and the West Notes Index

'It is of enormous help to those who campaign against giantism in water resource schemes in the developing world ... Worster writes vividly ... much of his material is carefully deconstructed documentation and if the quotations read as larger than life, so were the key actors ... it is for the reviewer (a scientist) to muse, after completing this magnificent and significant text, that the true value of Worster's critique is for all our futures, under scenarios of climate change and population growth.' Malcolm Newson, Ecumene 1994

"Classic."--New Internationalist "Extremely wonderful and well-written."--Thomas G. Alexander, Brigham Young University "Worster is an eloquent, often passionate historian....This important book, sure to be furiously debated, is a history of the West in terms of its most essential resource, water....It examines how manipulation of water has combined with frontier myths, expectations, and illusions, some of them carefully cultivated by interested parties, to create the ambiguous modern West."--Wallace Stegner "Worster is capable of making the most prosaic facts come alive through his mastery of the language, his imagery, and his ability to weave his ideas with events and personalities into a fascinating historical record."--The Los Angeles Times Book Review "Many readers will disagree with [Worster's] conclusions, but they are so forcefully presented that they cannot be dismissed, and will likely shape the discussions for years to come....A language of exceptional poetry and power....He takes his place in a tradition of awed affectionate writing about the West that includes John Muir and Edward Abbey, Bernard De Voto and Wallace Stegner. That is distinguished company indeed, and Donald Worster stands tall in it."--The New York Times Book Review "A brilliant book, clear in its argument, exceptional in its literary qualities."--The Los Angeles Times Book Review "Impassioned and lyrical."--The New York Times Book Review "An excellent choice for courses that include readings from the New Western History interpretations."--Thomas L. Charlton, Baylor University

Donald Worster, who won the Bancroft Prize for his book Dust Bowl: The Southern Plains in the 1930s, is Hall Distinguished Professor of American History at the University of Kansas. He is also the author of The Ends of the Earth, Nature's Economy: A History of Ecological Ideas, and the forthcoming Under Western Skies: Nature and History in the American West.