OUT OF THE NOOSPHERE: Adventure, Sports, Travel,...

OUT OF THE NOOSPHERE: Adventure, Sports, Travel, and the Environment: The Best of Outside Magazine compiled by the editors (Fireside: $14; 480 pp . , paperback original). This impressive but uneven anthology suggests that Outside is a hipper, more literate version of the old men’s adventure magazines. Bill McKibben skillfully weaves personal experiences into an a concerned essay on the future of Adirondack Park in New York State, while David Quamman explores the bittersweet memories that flow through his favorite trout stream in Montana. However, some of the subjects profiled in other articles sound certifiable, rather than adventurous, including a biology professor who attempted an ill-prepared solo voyage to Antarctica and an old man who puts live ferrets down his pants (don’t ask). Like an amorous porcupine, “Out of the Noosphere” should be approached with caution.