Best of
Wilderness

2020

Journeys North: The Pacific Crest Trail


Barney Scout Mann - 2020
    This ensemble story unfolds as these half-dozen hikers--including Barney and his wife, Sandy--trod north, slowly forming relationships and revealing their deepest secrets and aspirations. They face a once-in-a-generation drought and early severe winter storms that test their will in this bare-knuckled adventure. In fact, only a third of all the hikers who set out on the trail that year would finish.As the group approaches Canada, a storm rages. How will these very different hikers, ranging in age, gender, and background, respond to the hardship and suffering ahead of them? Can they all make the final 60-mile push through freezing temperatures, sleet, and snow, or will some reach their breaking point?Journeys North is a story of grit, compassion, and the relationships people forge when they strive toward a common goal.

A Higher Calling: Pursuing Love, Faith, and Mount Everest for a Greater Purpose


Harold Earls - 2020
    But as a novice mountain climber and newlywed, could he really leave his wife, Rachel, on the other side of the world to pursue such a dangerous quest? After all, Rachel's dream was to be a wife and mother. She knew that her husband's audacious goal might lead to her to give up everything.A Higher Calling takes us on a beautiful journey through the ups and downs of their relationship, from their unlikely introduction and whirlwind romance to their fairy-tale wedding and the dreams they shared. Dreams that required tremendous sacrifice and faith--in each other and in God.As their dreams are realized, witness how Harold and Rachel used their powerful bond of love to overcome obstacles and learn that life is about doing versus having, serving versus getting, being versus wanting.A Higher Calling shows each of us that when God's purpose and our passion meet, we can transcend any sacrifice we make on the mountains of adversity. And as we approach life with an attitude of thanksgiving, we realize that being joyful and living in love is worth it. Every time.

Field Guide to the Haunted Forest


Jarod K. Anderson - 2020
    Poet and podcaster Jarod K. Anderson (creator of The CryptoNaturalist Podcast) has built a large audience of social media followers and podcast listeners with his strange, vibrant appreciations of nature. Ranging from contemplations of mortality to appreciations of single-celled organisms, the poems in this collection highlight our connection to a living universe and affirm our place in a wilderness worthy of our love.

The Meateater Guide to Wilderness Skills and Survival


Steven Rinella - 2020
    Informed by the real-life experiences of renowned outdoorsman Steven Rinella, its pages are packed with tried-and-true tips, techniques, and gear recommendations.Among other skills, readers will learn about old-school navigation and essential satellite tools, how to build a basic first-aid kit and apply tourniquets, and how to effectively purify water using everything from ancient methods to cutting-edge technologies. This essential guide delivers hard-won insights and know-how garnered from Rinella's own experiences and mistakes and from his trusted crew of expert hunters, anglers, emergency-room doctors, climbers, paddlers, and wilderness guides--with the goal of making any reader feel comfortable and competent while out in the wild.

Romancing the Wilderness


Dorothy Wiley - 2020
    The set includes Wilderness Trail of Love, New Frontier of Love, and Whispering Hills of Love, more than 900 pages of heroes, suspense, and tender romance. Set in 1797, these frontier stories seamlessly blend breathtaking action with family, friendship, and laughter. Wilderness Trail of Love — Dreaming of building a better life, Stephen and Jane set out across the American frontier in search of a place to call home. But as they bravely plunge through the unexplored formidable wilderness, will their love be as strong as their courage? A robust blend of adventure and action, heartache and humor, with romance and passion, this riveting tale breaches the walls of time, bringing readers to a young America, where romance and danger are as powerful as the wilderness.New Frontier of Love — A pulse-pounding page-turner set on America's romantic frontier! Captain Sam Wyllie lost too much in the Revolutionary War, and he's determined to safeguard his heart. When he meets widowed Catherine Adams, Sam commits himself to protecting her from the dangers of frontier life—but can he protect himself from the dangers of love? The Revolutionary War left Sam battle-hardened. His courageous but cold heart defies danger—and love. His only fear is love. He is determined to make a fresh start with his brothers, not Catherine, in the far West, the new state of Kentucky. But drawn to Sam's keen intelligence, harsh masculinity, and rugged warrior façade, Catherine decides the west holds a chance for real love.Whispering Hills of Love — After years of pain, Kelly leaves her remote home in the Virginia mountains for the Kentucky wilderness. But as she confronts the uncertainties of the frontier, she finds her feelings for handsome sheriff William growing stronger and more complicated. William keeps his attraction to Kelly hidden, to give her time to heal and to become the strong woman he knows she can be. As the brave sheriff of Boonesborough, on the very edge of the wilderness, William knows how to challenge difficulties head-on. But Kelly’s heart-rending problems mount with frightening speed as harrowing forces confront her. William seeks to protect Kelly from further trauma, but he also helps her learn to find strength from within. To do that, she must confront the hardest person to be honest with—herself.

Edge of the Map : the Mountain Life of Christine Boskoff


Johanna Garton - 2020
    Edge of the Map traces Christine’s life as a high-altitude climber and mountain guide - from a two-day climbing course while a Lockheed engineer in Atlanta to her remarkable leadership of Seattle’s Mountain Madness guiding company following Scott Fischer’s death on Mount Everest in 1996. She was a rarity at the time - a woman leading otherwise all-male expeditions. Despite challenges both personal and professional, Christine persevered to find freedom and a balance with nature on the earth’s wildest peaks. And, in legendary Colorado rock climber Fowler, she discovered her perfect partner. Edge of the Map captures each step of the pair’s story, culminating in their disappearance among the remote peaks of western China and the desperate search to find them which gripped the world.

Raven's Witness: The Alaska Life of Richard K. Nelson


Hank Lentfer - 2020
    Nelson was the host of the national public radio series, "Encounters" Nelson was an anthropologist who lived with Alaska Native tribes and spoke both Inupiag and Koyukon Based on Nelson's journals and interviews with Gary Snyder, Barry Lopez, Rick Bass, and others "He listened to his [Native Alaskan] teachers, immersed himself in their landscapes as a naturalist, and became, without intending to, a great teacher himself." --Barry Lopez, from the forewordBefore his death in 2019, cultural anthropologist, author, and radio producer Richard K. Nelson's work focused primarily on the indigenous cultures of Alaska and, more generally, on the relationships between people and nature. Nelson lived for extended periods in Athabaskan and Alaskan Eskimo villages, experiences which inspired his earliest written works, including Hunters of the Northern Ice In Raven's Witness, Lentfer tells Nelson's story--from his midwestern childhood to his first experiences with Native culture in Alaska through his own lifelong passion for the land where he so belonged. Nelson was the author of the bestselling The Island Within and Heart and Blood. The recipient of multiple honorary degrees and numerous literary awards, he regularly packed auditoriums when he spoke. His depth of experience allowed him to become an intermediary between worlds. This is his story.

Inspire: Life Lessons from the Wilderness


Ben Fogle - 2020
    Ranging across seas, icecaps, jungles and deserts, Ben’s stories are filled with wonder and struggle, with animals, adventure, wilderness, friendships, unexpected acts of kindness and heroism, and are bursting with inspiration directly from nature. Ben’s epic stories reveal a new side to his adventures and show how everyone can find meaning in the wilderness, even if it’s just outside their front door.Full of exciting adventures and practical guidance, this primer on positivity is a story about overcoming obstacles, surpassing your expectations and inspiring your journey of adventure.

The Shoe Boy: A Trapline Memoir


Duncan McCue - 2020
    In the five months that followed, he learned a way of life on the land with which few are familiar, where the daily focus is on the necessities of life, and where both skill and finesse are required for self-sufficiency.In The Shoe Boy, that boy – Duncan McCue – takes us on an evocative journey that explores the hopeful confusion of the teenage years, entwined with the challenges and culture shock of coming from a mixed-race family and moving to the unfamiliar North. As he reflects on his search for his own personal identity, he illustrates he relationship Indigenous peoples have with their lands, and the challenges urban Indigenous people face when they seek to reconnect to traditional lifestyles.The result is a contemplative, honest, and unexpected coming-of-age memoir set in the context of the Cree struggle to protect their way of life, after massive hydro-electric projects forever altered the landscape they know as Eeyou Istchee.

The Trapper


Ellie Douglas - 2020
    

Justin Cody's Race to Survival!: High Adventure in the Canadian Wilderness


Cliff Jacobson - 2020
    Forced to take a wilderness canoe trip in Canada with his Grandpa Henry, Cody is thrust into a race for survival when the two discover a top-secret drone developed by the U.S. military. Grandpa Henry is kidnapped and Justin--who knows nothing about canoeing and camping--must canoe alone to a distant lake that promises rescue. A riveting high-adventure tale AND a wilderness "skills" book! Learn important outdoor skills: make fire in the rain, storm-proof your camp, tie useful knots, find wild foods that are safe to eat, survive an encounter with a bear or moose, and more!

Kidnapped by the Wolves


Jasmine Wylder - 2020
    I thought being turned into a vampire against my will was the worst thing that could happen to me.But I was wrong.I am condemned to a life I dread.A life I don’t want.It has led me to a sleepy town in the mountains.A place where I want to start fresh.Little do I know, my fate awaits me here.It’s where I meet them.Two wolf shifters.Sly Yarbo, the man who takes me prisoner.He hates vampires.So does his second-in-command, Devon Klein.Sly is used to defying rules.He is used to getting his way.And Devon knows exactly how much Sly wants me.Because he does, too.I am tempted to let them own me.Tempted to let them keep me in here forever.But are their feelings real?And will they choose to protect me when my worst enemy shows up?Author’s Note:✦ book 1 of the Devil Mountain Wolf Shifters series✦ with HEA, so no cliff-hangers✦ this story contains mature themes and language, and is intended for 18+ readers only