Preface: Ticktock

Prologue: A world away hits close to home

Part one: Fire. The flame tamer ; Harry's war ; Nature fights back ; Nature's hydrogen bomb ; Picking up the pieces ; Engineered miracles ; "Go, go, go" ; The whack-a-mole defensive ; When giants fall ; The uncharted road ahead ; To stay or to go ; "Nature's way"

Part two: Water. Ice chaser ; The wake-up call ; Life before ; Answers on ice ; Sitting ducks ; Notes from a post-storm philharmonic ; Regulating sandcastles ; Fatal attraction ; Lessons learned ; Asleep at the wheel

Part three: Air. Foote's notes ; Delirium nocturnum ; The beast ; Coffee, grits, and motorcycle grease ; HWY 89 ; The land between the rivers ; All hands on deck ; Ms. Becky's place

Part four: Earth. Father of soil ; Dexter dirt ; Creampuff pioneers ; Checkmate ; Virgin land grab ; Turning the (dinner) tables

Epilogue: Kamikaze iguanas.