The Hermit's Story: StoriesA Los Angeles Times Best Book of the Year: “Uniformly excellent” stories about our relationships with each other and with the treacherous natural world (Publishers Weekly). In the title story, a man and woman travel across an eerily frozen lake—under the ice. “The Distance” casts a skeptical eye on Thomas Jefferson through the lens of a Montana man’s visit to Monticello. “Eating” begins with an owl being sucked into a canoe and ends with a man eating a town out of house and home, and “The Cave” is a stunning story of a man and woman lost in an abandoned mine. Other stories include “The Fireman,” “Swans,” “The Prisoners,” “Presidents’ Day,” “Real Town,” and “Two Deer.” Each is remarkable in its own way, sure to please both new readers and avid fans of Rick Bass’s passionate, unmistakable voice. “Bass focuses a naturalist’s eye not only on the frozen lakes and interplay of predator and prey often found in his work but also on the ebb and flow of human emotions and relationships . . . Thought-provoking and entertaining, these stories move along quickly but continue to resonate long after the reader is done; several have been anthologized in award collections.” —Library Journal “Beautiful in their magical imagery, dramatic in their situations, and exquisitely poignant in their insights, these stories of awe and loss are quite astonishing in their mythic use of place and the elements of earth, air, fire, and water.” —Booklist “Bass puts his talent as a nature writer to terrific use.” —The New York Times Book Review “Bass’s language glistens with the beauty of the landscapes he evokes.” —San Francisco Chronicle Book Review |
Contents
| 1 | |
SWANS | 19 |
THE PRISONERS | 41 |
THE FIREMAN | 51 |
THE CAVE | 74 |
PRESIDENTS DAY | 90 |
REAL TOWN | 122 |
EATING | 135 |
THE DISTANCE | 141 |
Two DEER | 161 |
Back Matteer | 180 |
Back Cover | 181 |
Spine | 182 |
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Common terms and phrases
Amy's Artie asked baby beautiful began beneath Billy Billy's birds blue breath bunker gear burning cabin canoe cattails chitin cold coming coyotes dark deer dogs Doritos dreams driving eyes fall feel feet felt fire firefighters flames flatcar frozen going gone Gray Owl hair hands head hole Jefferson Jerry Jick Jick's Jim's Karen keep Kirby tells knew laughed light listening live look marriage Martha Mary Ann Monticello mountain moving nausea night Osage orange pager passed perhaps pull retina RICK BASS river road Russell scent seemed shore Sissy sitting skull sleep slip slowly smoke snipe snow snowshoes sometimes sound staring stop stove swans sweetgum Texas City thing told town tracks trees truck trying turn valley waiting walking wall wanted warm watching wild Wilson window winter wolves wondered woods