Stephen J. Pyne is an emeritus professor at Arizona State University. Formerly he spent fifteen seasons with the North Rim Longshots and three seasons writing fire plans for the National Park Service. He lives in Queen Creek, Arizona. His many books about the history and environmental role of fire include: Awful Splendor: A Fire History of Canada, Burning Bush: A Fire History of Australia, Fire in America: A Cultural History of Wildland and Rural Fire, Fire on the Rim: A Firefighter’s Season at the Grand Canyon, Vestal Fire: An Environmental History, Told through Fire, of Europe and Europe’s Encounter with the World and World Fire: The Culture of Fire on Earth.