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Robert Lindsay Mason's The Lure of the Great Smokies offers a remarkable portrait of the Tennessee mountains during the critical years preceding the establishment of Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 1934. The book captures a region in transition, documenting both the natural beauty of the Smokies and the cultural forces that shaped mountain life. Combining the roles of journalist, photographer, and travel writer, Robert Lindsay Mason hiked remote trails and traveled on horseback throughout the Smokies, recording landscapes and the lives of local residents, including Cherokee inhabitants and their enduring connection to the mountains. His vivid descriptions, often rendered in Smoky Mountain vernacular, create a powerful sense of place.

Mason also examines the unique mountain economy, from subsistence farming to the illicit moonshine trade that flourished in isolated communities, most notably in his chapter "A Raid in the Smokies." Equally important are his observations of the region's extraordinary biodiversity, gathered through travels with scientists and ornithologists studying the mountains' flora and fauna. He poignantly documents the environmental destruction caused by large-scale clear-cutting by lumber companies, underscoring the urgency of conservation efforts. Viewing his work as an investment in the future, Mason sought not only to educate the public about the Smokies but also to preserve a disappearing world and build support for making the future national park accessible to all.

In this new edition, Mason's descendant Anne Mason Winsauer annotates the original text, recounts the personal history of the author, and reflects on the generational love for the Smokies he and others like Horace Kephart and Carson Brewer inspired. She also includes thirty-five previously unpublished photos taken by Mason between 1908 and 1932. A classic for nearly a century, The Lure of the Great Smokies deserves a place on the bookshelves of anyone interested in America's most-visited national park.