Even before he started to put pen to paper, Doug Kelly realized trying to write a chronological history of Alberta's land development industry would be boring.

There's not all that much excitement tied to moving dirt, digging trenches or pouring sidewalks.

So the former Carma Developers vice-president-turned-author decided to skip the technical stuff and the numbers and get up close and personal with the people who have helped grow the industry since the 1950s.

Kelly's book, $100,000 an Acre: A Candid History of the Land Development Industry in Alberta, is a compilation of the "entrepreneurs and characters who shaped the land development and housing industry" in the province.

As for the title, Kelly says only twice in his career has he seen the per acre price for raw land climb past $100,000.

With 36 years in the industry before his retirement, Kelly has a good working knowledge of the sector and with the help of 130 interviews has written a colourful book focusing on the visionaries, opportunists, mavericks, lawyers, planners and builder-entrepreneurs who have been part of the industry's colourful fabric.

The book is also liberally spotted with memories and recollections of or about individuals, just to give the book an even more folksy feel.

But it can't be forgotten that Kelly's book is about how the industry came about, what it has been able to accomplish in reshaping the landscape of the province.