I just finished this last night and recommend it to anyone wanting a brief but humorous synopsis of the James River. The author does a fine job of cliff-noting each stretch of river and bridging the gap between geography and history. In particular, his anecdotal briefs on Virginia's native (Indian) tribes are fascinating- so much that I plan to explore this in more depth. Virginia is ripe with names like Monacan, Mattaponi, Pamunkey, etc and he does a great job of explaining the origins.
The beginning of the trip focuses on the Jackson River and its origins (rather than the Cowpasture which the author considers a tributary). He brushes over the Crown Grant dispute but spends considerable time explaining the dam and Lake Moomaw and the heated debate surrounding its construction. The journey into Lynchburg's nine dams and massive industrial complexes is disturbing but is tapered by his very in depth explanation of the canal system linking the James and Kanawa. I can't believe remnants of this great canal still exist!
I wish he had spent a little more time discussing Nelson and Buckingham counties (my favorite place on the James)- but you can't do it all and cowpastures aren't that exciting.
This really is an insightful look into the history of Virginia and the role of the James River in exploration and expansion.
http://www.upress.virginia.edu/books/swift.html
