This book recounts the journey of conservationist David Morine and his friend retired CEO Ramsay Peard, who traveled by canoe down the Connecticut River in 2003. Rather than camping, they stayed with strangers every night, and heard about many of the issues they face, including the demise of farming, the growth of the health care industry, the loss of manufacturing, the boom in higher education, gay rights, Native American rights, Wal-Mart versus Main Street, and the river and conservation efforts. Peard didn't tell Morine that he was planning on leaving his wife and killing himself, which forms a sad end to the tale. Morine, a conservationist and author, was formerly the head of land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy. Annotation c2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.