English Professor William Major recently interviewed Author Erik Reece for Public Books, an online publication that works to bring the knowledge of scholars, academics, and students to the widest possible audience.
The conversation marks the 20th anniversary of Reece’s groundbreaking 2006 book, Lost Mountain: A Year in the Vanishing Wilderness, which documented the devastating environmental and human consequences of mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia. The book, the first published on the subject, chronicles the destruction of a mountain in eastern Kentucky and the ecosystems and communities affected by the practice.
In June 2025, Major traveled with Reece from Lexington to Hazard, Kentucky, returning to the landscape at the heart of Reece’s work. Over several days, the two discussed the origins of Lost Mountain, the role of teaching, and the spiritual dimensions of the natural world, including the possibility of finding the Kingdom of God in a mountain watershed.