In the Country of the Blind

Having lost his job, his wife, and nearly all of his eyesight, a former Merrill Lynch stockbroker braves a strange but compelling new existence in northern Vermont among hippies, drug dealers, evangelicals, and struggling farmers.We are in the Vietnam era. Much of the time, the aged Press lives a life of "banal loneliness" in a small farm cabin, listening to Bach and Mozart on a Montreal radio station--sounds inseparable from "the creak of his swing on the porch, barn swallows harvesting bugs overhead, a teacher bird, and a wood thrush's liquid fluting." As much out of curiosity or boredom as compassion, the locals take an interest in him--especially Carol, an artist who lives on a nearby commune. She becomes his driver, social guide, caretaker, tease, and unexpected sex partner. In her company, he finds himself pushing past perceived limitations and brushing off his ex-wife's recommendation that he move into a nursing home. Never mind the dealers who are secretly storing marijuana in his shed. Long on surprises, his new life proves as richly revealing as it is unsettling. A treasure on multiple levels, the novel leads us into its protagonist's sensory world with such ease, intimacy, and humor the 83-year-old Hoagland--who is going blind himself--seems to be in our thoughts as much as we are in his. Taking leave of Press is no easy task.The incomparable Hoagland's 25th book is not only one of the most rewarding novels of the year, it's also one of the sexiest. COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

December 1, 2016

Sixty years after the publication of his first novel, Hoagland, best known and celebrated for his nature and travel essays (e.g., Notes from the Century Before), presents this brief, final piece of fiction. Like Hoagland himself, the narrator, whose name is Press, is going blind. Press lives in northeast Vermont near a hippie commune, failing farmers, and drug traffickers, and he gladly accepts much-needed help and any kindness offered to him. Once a successful stockbroker, now unemployed and divorced, he is concerned about his small monthly income; his two young children, whom he misses terribly; and where he will spend his coming days. Should he succumb to the safety and security of an assisted living facility, join the commune, or seek another alternative? Press's ever-increasing sense of isolation and loneliness as his precious little sight decreases makes him truly grateful for his experiences with nature and friends past and present. VERDICT Touching but unsentimental, the narrative evokes the whole of a man with the gentle, thoughtful, and precise words that epitomize Hoagland's writing. Fine reading and essential for fans of the author's oeuvre.--Lisa Rohrbaugh, Leetonia Community P.L., OH

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2016
Acclaimed essayist and nature writer Hoagland's (The Devil's Tub, 2014) exquisite new novel evokes many of the same themes as his most celebrated nonfiction. As the conflict in Vietnam is escalating, Press struggles to adjust to the degenerative condition that has robbed him of his sight. Living out his days in a Vermont summer cottage, the former stockbroker, accustomed to a life of country clubs and dinner parties, must now rely on the kindness of his new hardscrabble neighbors, including Carol, a young mother, artist, and member of a local commune of hippies with whom he engages in a complicated yet tender relationship. Small-town lifethe toils, troubles, and hard-won wisdom of the inhabitantsis shrewdly observed and lovingly depicted. The vivid yet languid prose adds authenticity to the first-person narration as Press describes what he hears and feels but cannot see. Hoagland, who is himself blind, employs a precise rendering of the senses in service to crafting a masterful work. For readers of Thomas McGuane and Jim Harrison.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)