http://news.excite.com:80/news/bw/990928/ca-harpersanfrancisco
Updated 7:04 AM ET September 28, 1999


FEATURE: True Heroine for Today Pens Story

SAN FRANCISCO (BUSINESS WIRE FEATURES) -- HarperSanFrancisco, a division of
HarperCollins, is pleased to announce that it has reached an agreement to
publish the astonishing, true story of Julia Butterfly Hill's courageous
struggle to save the ancient redwoods.

Hill's story is one of conviction, perseverance, and the profound courage
and determination it takes to fight against all odds for the things that
matter most.

On December 10th, 1997, Julia Butterfly Hill climbed a 1,000-year-old,
200-foot-tall redwood tree named Luna to protest the destructive logging of
the old-growth redwood forests in Northern California by the Pacific Lumber
Company, a division of the Houston-based Maxxam Corporation. Hill never
planned to become what some have called her -- the Rosa Parks of the
environmental movement.

When she first climbed up the tree, she had no idea she would have to
endure the violence of El Nino storms. She never imagined that Pacific
Lumber's subcontractor would buzz her tree with helicopters or that she
would be the object of a ten-day siege by company security guards in an
effort to cut off her supplies. She never envisioned being an eyewitness to
the mass destruction of one of the last redwood forests in the world,
forests that took over a thousand years to grow.

As of this writing, Hill has remained in Luna for over 650 days. Emerging
as both a celebrity and a new heroine for today, she has been featured in
Time, Rolling Stone, New York Times, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, the
San Francisco Examiner, and on CNN, NBC's "Dateline," and National Public
Radio.

Chosen as one of George magazine's "20 Most Fascinating Women in Politics"
(9/99 issue), nominated for Good Housekeeping's 30th Annual Most Admired
Women in 1998, and featured in People's "The 25 Most Intriguing People of
the Year" (1998) issue, Julia is expected to cause quite a stir with the
publication of her story.

Julia's lone vigil has drawn international attention to the plight of the
redwoods, with television, radio, print, and Internet journalists, as well
as fellow activists Bonnie Raitt and Joan Baez, making the pilgrimage to
Luna. She receives hundreds of letters weekly from people around the world.

She has delivered keynote addresses via cellular phone to environmental
conferences, served as panelist on the United Nations Commission on Human
Settlements, and received an Honorary Doctorate Degree of Humanities from
the New College of California School of Humanities.

For millions, Julia's courage and commitment have transformed Luna into a
powerful symbol of hope and respect for all life.

Forest activist Julia Butterfly Hill, 25, is a writer and poet. She helped
form the Circle of Life Foundation to promote the sustainability,
restoration, and preservation of life. The Foundation is affiliated with
and fiscally sponsored by the nonprofit Trees Foundation working for the
conservation and preservation of forest ecosystems.

To be published in Spring 2000, THE LEGACY OF LUNA: The Story of a Tree, A
Woman and the Struggle to Save the Redwoods by Julia Butterfly Hill will
present the full story as only she can tell it.

The book will be published on paper that is made up of 70% FSC (Forestry
Stewardship Council) certified paper which meets the strictest requirements
to ensure not only sustainable forests, but practices that protect
indigenous cultures, biodiversity, and employee relations in the areas
where the wood is harvested. The paper is also composed of 30%
post-consumer recycled fibers.

All fibers, both recycled and FSC, are processed in a totally chlorine-free
TCF process. TCF bleaching is a pollution prevention process that does not
create dioxin in our waterways or air. The book will be printed with
soy-based ink. All of the author's profits will go to the Circle of Life
Foundation.

Praise for Julia Butterfly Hill:

"Julia is a lightning rod 180 feet atop a giant redwood. She says, 'No more
old-growth redwoods should be cut -- not on my watch.' She's the Joan of
Arc of the redwoods." --Mickey Hart (from Rolling Stone)

"Julia gives such special shine to the word 'possible.' I think better and
with sweeter resolve knowing such as she dances in the trees... Julia
answers the question: 'Can one person make a difference?'" --Patch Adams, MD

"Visiting Julia Butterfly was one of the most remarkable experiences of my
life." --Joan Baez

"To experience Julia's commitment and love for these forests in person was
a life-changing event. She was literally shining." --Bonnie Raitt

"Julia's evolved into a incredibly powerful figure." --Woody Harrelson
(from People)

Contact: HarperSanFrancisco Meg Lenihan, 415/477-4407
meg.lenihan@harpercollins.com



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