Where the Sky Began

Land of the Tallgrass Prairie

By John Madson
Illustrated by Dycie Madson

Bur Oak Books

340 pages, 24 drawings, 3 maps, 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches, 1982
$19.95 paper, 0-87745-861-8, 978-0-87745-861-6

“John Madson has written a lovely little study of that vast area and its endless prairie—its origins, its character and its impact on the men and women who found it, used it, changed it and all but destroyed it.”—New York Times

“Madson is a prairie man. . . a true and instructive and entertaining grasslander.”—New Yorker

“A splendid new book . . . an enchanting travelogue through time as well as space.”—Chicago Sun-Times

“A midland bounty, eloquent and encyclopedic. A sourcebook, prime reading, easeful learning—and a lure.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Beautiful and moving, balancing a lyric line with dry Midwestern wit.”—Chicago Magazine

“Captivating.”—Des Moines Register

“The best kind of book for a nature lover.”—Duluth News-Tribune

“Reading Madson is like reading some of his more illustrious and heady predecessors in the American experience . . . namely Emerson and Thoreau.”—Kansas City Star

“It was a flowing emerald in spring and summer when the boundless winds ran across it, a tawny ocean under the winds of autumn, and a stark and painful emptiness when the great long winds drove in from the northwest. It was Beulahland for many; Gehenna for some. It was the tall prairie.”—from the “Prologue”

Originally published in 1982, Where the Sky Began, John Madson’s landmark publication, introduced readers across the nation to the wonders of the tallgrass prairie, sparking the current interest in prairie restoration. Now back in print, this classic tome will serve as inspiration to those just learning about the heartland’s native landscape and rekindle the passion of long-time prairie enthusiasts.

Iowa native John Madson (1923-1995) wrote on the natural history and resource conservation of rivers, prairies, plains, and deserts. His work has been extensively published in periodicals such as Audubon, Smithsonian, and National Geographic, among many others. His books include Up on the River, Out Home, Stories from Under the Sky, and Tallgrass Prairie.

Nature   Midwest