Specifically prepared for the use of Forest Service field-based interpreters of the management, protection, and use of forest and range resources and the associated human, cultural, and natural history found on these lands, this book is the second in a series of six primers on the multiple use of forest and range resources. Following an introduction to fire management, there are 12 main chapters: (1) Fire History, (2) Fire Triangle, (3) Fire Physics, (4) Fire Behavior, (5) Weather, (6) Topography, (7) Fuels, (8) Fire Management, (9) Forest and Range Fire Control, (10) Prescribed Fire, (11) Fire Management Research and the Future, and (12) The Need for Fire Management. Also included are a list of 99 facts of interest about fire and fire management and a list of references for suggested additional reading. Forest interpretation is defined briefly (a communications program which offers a service to the visitor through opportunities for on-the-ground guide or "do-it-yourself" learning experiences) and the role of the forest interpreter (usually temporary summer employees--experienced high school or college teachers of the natural sciences) is described. (JT)