RELIGION AT THE EDGE: NATURE, SPIRITUALITY, AND SECULARITY IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. Edited by PaulBramadat, Patricia O'ConnellKillen, and SarahWilkins‐Laflamme. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2022. Pp. viii+266. Hardback, $89.95; Paperback, $37.95.

This comprehensive, multiauthor work explores the complex interplay of religion, spirituality, and secularism in the Pacific Northwest, or Cascadian, cultural landscape, a region characterized by notably low religiosity in contrast to other areas of the United States and Canada. Cascadia—comprising Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia—forms a unique “religious ecosystem,” often described as the “None Zone” for its largely unchurched population. There is a strong association between spirituality and nature: Outdoor recreational activities are often seen as equivalent to, or even more meaningful than, traditional religious practices such as attending church, reflecting the belief that Cascadia's landscape offers an authentic spiritual experience. Reverential naturalism has become a defining element of Cascadian identity, providing common ground in a space where no one religious tradition predominates and where institutional religious expressions are often viewed skeptically. Emerging from a collaborative effort by an international team of interdisciplinary scholars, this volume began with the establishment of a robust and comprehensive dataset, subsequently using it to analyze key characteristics of the region. The authors analyze how individuals in Cascadia engage with or distance themselves from inherited religious traditions, offering insights into broader regional, national, and global trends in secularization and the evolution of religious beliefs in late modernity. Collectively, their investigation centers on three principal themes: the effects of secularization, the role of the border in shaping regional identity, and the challenges traditional religious adherents may encounter within a context marked by unconventional spiritual and secular dynamics. This pioneering work provides a nuanced analysis of Cascadia's religious and spiritual identity, uncovering the complex ways in which secularism, spirituality, and environmental consciousness are interwoven into the region's cultural fabric. Moreover, it offers a valuable contribution to understanding how religious identity and practice adapt and evolve in response to the unique cultural, historical, and social dynamics of the region.

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