EDGE WALKING ON THE WESTERN RIM: New...

EDGE WALKING ON THE WESTERN RIM: New Works by 12 Northwest Writers edited by Mayumi Tsutakawa, photographs by Bob Peterson (Sasquatch Books: $19.95; 160 pp., paperback original). As the 20th Century limps to its conclusion, the Pacific Northwest has assumed a new importance in American culture. Tsutakawa asked 12 writers to explain why they live in the region. Sherman Alexie, Lawson Fusao Inada and David James Duncan offer intelligent discussions about their relationships with society and nature. But Brenda Peterson’s touchy-feely essay about baby whales and Sharon Doubiago’s artsy posturing contribute little to the reader’s understanding of the Northwest’s special appeal. With typically off-the-wall humor, Tom Robbins praises the rainy climate of Washington, noting, “I’m also here for the volcanoes and the salmon, and the exciting possibility that at any moment the volcanoes could erupt and pre-poach the salmon.”