"When John Muir died in 1914, the pre-eminent American naturalist, explorer, and conservationist had not yet written the second volume of his autobiography, in which he had planned to cover his Yosemite years, 1863 to 1875. Working with a variety of sources - Muir's letters, journals, articles, and unpublished manuscripts, as well as selections drawn from biographical pieces written about Muir by people who met him in Yosemite in the early 1870s - editors Engberg and Wesling have assembled what they term a "composite autobiography. " They provide brief interpretive and transitional passages throughout the book and a short biographical/critical piece on Muir. "--BOOK JACKET.