This Is Wildfire: How to Protect Yourself, Your Home, and Your Community in the Age of Heat

A practical guide for living with wildfire, including essential history and science, actions you can take to protect your home, and guiding principles for life in an increasingly fiery future.

Wildfires are getting more destructive than ever before, especially in the American West. Flames in forests are scorching about twice as many trees as they did two decades ago and incinerated nearly 100,000 homes, barns, and other structures between 2005 and 2022. "Fire seasons" are now fire years. Tens of millions of people live in areas vulnerable to fire, and more keep moving in. Driven in part by climate change, the areas burned and prevalence of smoke in the skies is expected to skyrocket in the decades to come.

At the same time that wildfires leave swathes of the country in ash, they also renew. Wildfire is crucial for ecosystems to function and flourish. We're putting out many of the fires our landscape needs, and the ones that escape our control are devastating for forests and communities. It's clear what we're doing isn't working. Wildfire is inevitable, and we need to learn to live with it.

The first of its kind, This Is Wildfire offers everything you need to know about fire in one useful volume. Nick Mott and Justin Angle reflect on the history of humanity's connection to flames, analyze how our society arrived at this perilous moment, and recount stories of those fighting fire and trying to change our relationship with it. Throughout, they give practical advice, from choosing your insurance and making your home resilient to burns, to packing an emergency go-bag and rebuilding after a fire. With actionable insights-recommendations that can save lives, homes, and neighborhoods-This Is Wildfire is required reading for our new reality.