MixedAir MailCarl Hiaasen could have cooked up Knowlton’s cast of characters ... This crowded stage poses risks that Knowlton doesn’t entirely avoid. His pacing flags when the focus shifts to Douglas, whose great achievements as a crusading Everglades conservationist would come decades in the future, after the land-rush years. She simply doesn’t have enough to do to make her appearances compelling. More troubling is a frustrating sin of omission ... The banks that had bet their solvency on...future development failed, wiping out the savings of countless depositors. Knowlton concedes the embargo imposed a \'forced recess\' in the frenzy. As such, it surely deserved some of the attention devoted to Marjory Douglas. Still, Knowlton delivers a captivating story, bubbling with colorful anecdotes and surprising research.
