***Finalist for PEN/Hemingway Award*** The PEN/Hemingway Award, founded in 1976 by Mary Hemingway, the wife of Ernest Hemingway, to honour her late husband and draw attention to first books of fiction. ***Winner of Reading the West Book Awards*** Wes Carver returns to Black River, Montana, with just two things in the cab of his truck: his wife's ashes and a letter from the parole board. The convict who once held him hostage during a riot at the state prison is being considered for release. Wes grew up in Black River, and worked as a corrections officer, as most of the men there do. A gifted player, his fiddle was one of his few joys. But during the riot, Bobby Williams changed everything for Wes undermining his faith and stealing his music. Now Wes must decide whether he can let Williams walk away. In a stunning debut met with advance praise from the likes of Daniel Woodrell and Jess Walter, and starred reviews by every trade publication Hulse shows us the heart and darkness of an American town, and one man's struggle to find forgiveness in the wake of evil. AUTHOR: S. M. Hulse received her MFA from the University of Oregon and was a fiction fellow at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Her stories have appeared in Willow Springs, Witness, and Salamander. A horsewoman and fiddler, she has spent time in Washington, Montana, Idaho, and Oregon. SELLING POINTS: The hardcover was chosen as an Indies Introduce title, and received praise from booksellers around the country. It has received a starred review in each of the trades, with more to come when pub date arrives in January. Astonishingly assured and mature, this is fiction with powerful themes and deeply human characters. Examining justice, faith, grief, and the possibility of reconciliation and understanding with even our most vexing demons, Black River is a thoughtful, moving debut. The prison system in America is under harsh scrutiny; this novel puts a human face on the question of crime and punishment. Hulse was inspired by real events a riot at Old Montana Prison in Deer Lodge, Montana, in the 1950s.
Show more***Finalist for PEN/Hemingway Award*** The PEN/Hemingway Award, founded in 1976 by Mary Hemingway, the wife of Ernest Hemingway, to honour her late husband and draw attention to first books of fiction. ***Winner of Reading the West Book Awards*** Wes Carver returns to Black River, Montana, with just two things in the cab of his truck: his wife's ashes and a letter from the parole board. The convict who once held him hostage during a riot at the state prison is being considered for release. Wes grew up in Black River, and worked as a corrections officer, as most of the men there do. A gifted player, his fiddle was one of his few joys. But during the riot, Bobby Williams changed everything for Wes undermining his faith and stealing his music. Now Wes must decide whether he can let Williams walk away. In a stunning debut met with advance praise from the likes of Daniel Woodrell and Jess Walter, and starred reviews by every trade publication Hulse shows us the heart and darkness of an American town, and one man's struggle to find forgiveness in the wake of evil. AUTHOR: S. M. Hulse received her MFA from the University of Oregon and was a fiction fellow at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Her stories have appeared in Willow Springs, Witness, and Salamander. A horsewoman and fiddler, she has spent time in Washington, Montana, Idaho, and Oregon. SELLING POINTS: The hardcover was chosen as an Indies Introduce title, and received praise from booksellers around the country. It has received a starred review in each of the trades, with more to come when pub date arrives in January. Astonishingly assured and mature, this is fiction with powerful themes and deeply human characters. Examining justice, faith, grief, and the possibility of reconciliation and understanding with even our most vexing demons, Black River is a thoughtful, moving debut. The prison system in America is under harsh scrutiny; this novel puts a human face on the question of crime and punishment. Hulse was inspired by real events a riot at Old Montana Prison in Deer Lodge, Montana, in the 1950s.
Show moreS. M. HULSE received her MFA from the University of Oregon and was a fiction fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her stories have appeared in Willow Springs, Witness, and Salamander. A horsewoman and fiddler, she has spent time in Washington, Montana, Idaho, and Oregon.
Winner of the 2015 Reading the West Book Award A PEN/Hemingway Finalist Washington State Book Award Finalist Long-listed for the 2015 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize Semifinalist for the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award Short-listed for the Reading the West Book Awards Named an Honor Book for the 2015 Montana Book Award Nominated for the ?International Dublin Literary Award 2017 February 2015 Indie Next Title An ABA's Winter/Spring 2015 Indies Introduce title One of the Seattle Times's "Best Books of 2015" Named One of the Choice Books by the RUSA Committee(ALA) "This Montana-based story, about a prison guard who returns to his hometown after decades away, is an intricate work that layers faith with broken promises, broken bones, and broken hearts. This is a story of people shaped irrevocably by place and circumstance."--Seattle Times, "Best Books of 2015" "A promising debut...the lyrical landscapes and the emotional weather are in place." --John Williams, The New York Times "Impressive...[a] tough, honest novel by a surprisingly wise young writer." --Ron Charles, The Washington Post "Hulse evokes the Montana landscape in lyrical, vivid prose...[she] is a gifted wordsmith with promising dramatic instincts." --The Boston Globe "The assured rhythms of the language convey grace, restraint, insights, power, and beauty. Black River transcends its setting and the circumstances of a few people in a small Montana town to say something true and enduring about violence and families, and grief and compassion." -- Los Angeles Review of Books "Transcending its genre-fiction setting, Black River is a powerful meditation on faith, family and redemption set in present-day Montana."--The Guardian "This first novel pulses with dramatic tension and emotional resonance... Hulse's story is lyrical, elegiac and authentic. Watch for it on best-of-the-year lists." -- BBC Culture "This top-of-the-line modern American Western debut explores the themes of violence, revenge, and forgiveness with a sure hand...From the bluegrass theme to the Western rural setting, Hulse handles his story like a pro."--Publishers Weekly, starred and boxed review "Heads up--Hulse is a smart writer, able to reveal her character's gut-level emotions and trickiest self-manipulations. Comparing the author to Annie Proulx, Wallace Stegner, or Kent Haruf is no exaggeration. Her debut is bound to turn readers' hearts inside out and leave them yearning for some sweet, mournful fiddle music." --Library Journal, starred review "Hulse debuts with a stark, tender tale about one man's quest for faith and forgiveness...By making Wes' suffering so palpable, Hulse makes it even more moving when, in the novel's final pages, he achieves something he's been seeking for a very long time: grace. Profound issues addressed with a delicate touch and folded into a strong story populated by wrenchingly human characters: impressive work from a gifted young artist." --Kirkus, starred review "Hulse clearly loves Montana, and her own fiddle playing and knowledge of horses shine through the novel. She maintains suspense and manages to avoid the clichés of redemption stories in this assured debut." --Booklist, starred review "Black River tackles themes of Old Testament proportion--the inheritance of sin, deliverance and damnation, good and evil. Its characters wrestle --
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