Welcome to Hush of the Land

Before I begin

Dear reader,

When I first set foot in Smoke Elser’s barn, I did not know how consequential my next steps would be. For me, for Smoke, and hopefully, after the reading the book, a little bit for you too. Now after six years of recording stories, research, and writing “Hush of the Land : A Lifetime on the Bob Marshall Wilderness” (Bison Books) is out in the world and sold out in Missoula, Hamilton, and Amazon.

It has been a first wild week, and every day its own adventure. Each interview (more on that later) taught me something new about the book and myself. I wanted to stay in the shadows. These are Smoke’s stories, I just wrote them up. But each question on how I wrote this book, drew me out. “It’s time to start sharing your gifts instead of hoarding them or pretending they don’t exist,” Lily Gladstone said last week. And, so here I am, one step at a time, and I won’t turn back. I am done hiding.

If somebody would have told me six years ago that I will walk in this barn, write a book, that it will be published, and sell out after just five days, I would have laughed. Crazy talk.

Auf bald,

Eva