Upvote for the McPhee reference. Annals is the compilation of his 4 books on geology. Your reference is from Rising From The Plains, I think. They're excellent

Upvote for the McPhee reference. Annals is the compilation of his 4 books on geology. Your reference is from Rising From The Plains, I think. They're excellent reads on how North America came to be. Even as a non-geologist, they're among my favorite reads.