Reader’s Corner

We are pleased to make note of and celebrate publication of Benjamin Percy’s The Wilding (Graywolf, 2010), which has garnered considerably pre-publication buzz. We received our copy of the book in yesterday’s mail, and spent the evening feasting on this wonderful debut novel. We think it’s an idea match for Orion readers.

“Percy’s excellent debut novel (after the collection Refresh, Refresh) digs into the ambiguous American attitude toward nature as it oscillates between Thoreau’s romantic appreciation and sheer gothic horror.” (Publisher’s Weekly, starred review)

“The Wilding is a compelling action narrative, universal in its dimensions while utterly grounded in specific particular. Benjamin Percy is a stunning storyteller. His fearful wildernesses, both physical and psychic, kept me up through the night.” (William Kittredge)

“Not your father’s eco-novel. In compelling, image-driven prose, Benjamin Percy confounds the old polarities about wilderness and development by sending three generations of men into a doomed canyon, and letting so much hell break loose we can’t tell the heroes from the villains-which feels exactly right. This is a dark, sly, honest, pleasing, slip-under-your-skin-and-stay-there kind of a book.” (Pam Houston)

You might also enjoy this Orion audio of Benjamin Percy reading “Heart of a Bear” from the March/April 2010 issue.

For more about the author, click here.

The Wildling
A Novel by Benjamin Percy
Graywolf Press, 2010
$23.00 ($15.52 at Amazon)