Lake Placid sits in the Adirondack Mountains like a jewel in a green velvet box. The lake reflects the surrounding peaks so perfectly that you might get dizzy trying to figure out which way is up.

Rivers have sustained civilizations and carved landscapes through time. Rivers are a reminder that nature is never ordinary.

Part memoir, part manifesto, the book places the idyllic community’s founder alongside other thought leaders who’ve used their careers to argue for a different way of living.