"A Good Forest for Dying traces the long history of bitter clashes between environmental concerns and economic interests in the American West and shows why these tensions came to a head in northern California in the 1990s. It tells the story of how Pacific Lumber, once an environmentally friendly, family-owned business, became part of a conglomerate whose business practices made it a ripe target for environmental activists. Patrick Beach explores the blue-collar community of lumbermen, several generations old, thrust into irreconcilable conflict with an environmental activist community whose ideals and passions were no less powerful. A Good Forest for Dying is also the story of Gypsy Chain, a troubled young man raised in a loving family. In a great forest, far from his small Texas hometown, he died before he had a chance to come to terms with himself and his family. But his mother never lost faith in her sometimes wayward, idealistic son. After his death, helped by a team of astute lawyers, she mounted a fight for justice in his name - and the cause of saving the redwoods."--BOOK JACKET.