His entry begins:I loved reading Rebecca Skloot’s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, the story of a poor, dying black woman whose cancerous cells, taken without payment or consent, live on to power medical advances, scientific studies, and the fortunes of endless entrepreneurs and mega-corporations. Skloot’s book does what great narrative nonfiction must do: Surprise us, outrage us, move us and make us care about something we never even knew existed. (Did you know, for instance, that you have so little legal right to your own tissues that someone else can take them, patent them and sell them without your permission? I didn’t.) I was...[read on]Among the early praise for Force of Nature:
“The idea that 'going green' could actually be profitable, a notion put forth by economists as long as 20 years ago, remains a source of skepticism in some quarters. If you still need convincing, pick up Edward Humes’s excellent new book, 'Force of Nature'.... Mr. Humes does here what the very best business books do. He finds a good story to help illuminate an issue of surpassing importance.... Mr. Humes’s prose is almost flawless, lean and clear, egoless and spare. He doesn’t deify or demonize Wal-Mart or any of the characters; in fact, he says Wal-Mart’s very business model is probably unsustainable. This is first-rate work — both by the author and by Wal-Mart itself.”Learn more about the book and author at Edward Humes's website.
--Bryan Burrough, New York Times
“Walmart’s revolution in turning waste and harm into wealth and health is one of the most important stories of corporate leadership in modern history. Force of Nature clearly and powerfully assembles many of the strands of that fascinating story. Every executive, and every citizen seeking to influence business, should read it.”
--Amory Lovins, Rocky Mountain Institute"Humes was privy to this story no one has yet told and he tells that story masterfully.”
--Jeffrey Hollender, co-founder of Seventh Generation
“Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Humes offers a stirring story of how ecologically responsible practices are increasingly benefiting the bottom line... A fascinating, fair-minded look at the congruence between environmentalism and business, and the behemoth at the intersection.”
--Publishers Weekly
A "fascinating story of the evolution of corporate responsibility for the environment."
--Kirkus
The Page 69 Test: Edward Humes's Monkey Girl.
Humes's Eco Barons: The Dreamers, Schemers, and Millionaires Who Are Saving Our Planet was one of the top ten environmental books of 2009.
Writers Read: Edward Humes.
--Marshal Zeringue
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