information on her education in Chapter 1 where his work is briefly mentioned. In addition, nearly every part of Lytle’s ‘‘Afterword’’ could be more usefully placed elsewhere in the book. Descriptions of how he rediscovered Carson’s work while teaching a course in environmental history, why he decided to write The Gentle Subversive, and how he thinks it relates to the two existing biographies of Carson are more suitable for a preface. Discussions of his use of the terms ‘‘subversive’’ and ‘‘gentle’’ could be more successfully woven into the main body of the book. As Lytle notes, ‘‘Anyone seeking to write a biography of Rachel Carson has one critical advantage—she was a writer herself’’ (242), and he draws heavily on both her published works and personal letters. Lytle also relies on the two other major biographies of Carson, by Paul Brooks and Linda Lear, with which he largely agrees. His achievement is not necessarily in uncovering any particularly new material on Carson’s life, but in bringing the controversies surround- ing her work up to date, and more important, retelling her story to a broad audience. Lytle’s book is both sophisticated and detailed while remaining concise and accessible, a talent that he should be proud to share with his subject, Rachel Carson. Helen M. Wilbur University of Vermont Guy Ben-Porat. Global Liberalism, Local Populism: Peace and Conflict in Israel / Palestine and Northern Ireland. Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, 2006. This book provides a thoughtful contribution to comparative studies that have been made to address a number of conflict resolution cases, in particular, South Africa, Northern Ireland, the Balkans, and the Palestinian–Israeli conflict. These comparative studies provide sig- nificant insights into the root causes of conflicts and the influence of developments at the international and local levels in laying the ground for conflict management or resolution. Collectively, these comparative studies shed light on critical similarities and differences, both of which can help researchers understand the patterns of behavior that arise in and across cases of conflict and peacebuilding processes. Book Reviews 517