Out of sight, out of mind? Into our trash cans go dead batteries, dirty diapers, bygone burritos, broken toys, tattered socks, eight-track cassettes, scratched CDs, banana peels…. But where do these things go next? In a country that consumes and then casts off more and more, what actually happens to the things we throw away?

In Garbage Land, science writer Elizabeth Royte leads us on a wild adventure to answer that question. Along the way, we meet an odor chemist who explains why trash smells so bad; garbage fairies and recycling gurus; neighbors of massive waste dumps; CEOs making fortunes by encouraging waste or encouraging recycling—often both at the same time; scientists trying to revive our most polluted places; fertilizer fanatics and adventurers who kayak amid sewage; paper people, steel people, aluminum people, plastic people, and even a guy who swears by recycling human waste. With a wink and a nod and a tightly clasped nose, Royte takes us on a bizarre cultural tour through slime, stench, and heat—in other words, through the back end of our ever-more supersized lifestyles.

By showing us what happens to the things we’ve “disposed of,” Royte reminds us that our decisions about consumption and waste have a very real impact—and that unless we undertake radical change, the garbage we create will always be with us: in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we consume. Garbage Land is a brilliant exploration into the soiled heart of the American trash can.

“The author’s adventures in waste management provide a riveting travelog punctuated by a scathing indictment of American consumption.” —Wired

“A thorough, perceptive, graceful, and often witty writer.” —Washington Monthly