by Jack Nisbet ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 15, 1996
A lyrical account, in the tradition of Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, of a sojourn in the backwoods Northwest. The title may sound like a punk haircut, but it refers to a place that natural history writer Nisbet (Sources of the River, not reviewed) has made his own over the last few years: a little corner of semidesert in northeastern Washington, which Nisbet first saw when he came to help a friend build a house. ""This seemed like a perfect place,"" he writes. ""The chance to live outside, pounding nails in a place full of strange plants and animals, was exactly what I wanted to do. . . . The fact that neither of us had more than a passing acquaintance with a mason's trowel only spurred us on."" The consummate outsider, Nisbet tries mightily in the course of his narrative to ingratiate himself with the Chewelah Valley's close-knit human community. He succeeds, offering affectionate portraits of the hardscrabble farmers who live in the wheat country near Spokane, and such other distinctive figures as Darrell Somerset, a master of Western song (""Zane Grey crossed with Tony Bennett""), and Carolina Beck, a woman sure that the end of the world is nigh. Along the way, he also offers portraits of area wildlife, including a highly entertaining sighting of a mysterious albino raven who ranges the peaks of Purple Flat Top mountain ""with a flurry of swirling turns and boinky sounds."" A highlight is Nisbet's look into the prospect of reintroducing the timber wolf into the wild country surrounding the Chewelah Valley, a discussion that takes in the views of urban environmentalists and country people alike. In any event, one would be hard pressed not to like a book with a chapter that begins, ""That was the winter our neighbor Lynn finally decided to do something about his hemorrhoids."" A fine, gracefully written combination of bird-watching, people-watching, and regional history.
Pub Date: April 15, 1996
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 196
Publisher: Sasquatch
Review Posted Online: N/A
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1996
Categories: NONFICTION
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Trouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Trouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.