Book excerpt: Celebrate the environmental restoration of the Meadowlands. For decades, New Jersey's Meadowlands have been known as mostly the home of the NFL's Giants and Jets, the place where Jimmy Hoffa is purportedly buried, or a wasteland that you passed through on your way somewhere else. Until recently, that reputation was deserved. The land was blighted with unregulated landfills and the Hackensack River so polluted that barnacles couldn't survive. Today, though, the 30.4-square-mile region has made a remarkable comeback. Located in Bergen and Hudson Counties and just five miles from Manhattan, the Meadowlands is a prime destination for birders, kayakers, and other nature lovers. In words and images, The Nature of the Meadowlands illuminates the region's natural and unnatural history, from its darkest days of a half-century ago to its amazing environmental revival. This is a great resource and beautiful keepsake for residents and visitors, tourists of New Jersey, nature lovers, and history buffs.