The Golden Spruce: A True Story of Myth, Madness and Greed by John Vaillant
When a mentally ill logger-turned-activist cuts down a sacred tree, what do you do? Grant Hadwin grew up steeped in British Columbia's logging industry and was considered a prodigy before showing the signs of what may have been schizophrenia. As Hadwin spiraled into his own delusions and need for a greater purpose he created a one-man crusade for environmentalism that brought him to Haida Gwaii and the Golden Spruce. Revered as a sacred tree, spirit, and ancestor by the Haida, the Golden Spruce's death begins a court case and media frenzy that ultimately lead to Hadwin's death. This book is half-history and half-true crime, documenting the murder of a tree and how we responded. It's an interesting chapter of British Columbian history.
