Deeply felt, often metaphysical and sometimes
maddening, Rick Bass’ memoir describes his long journey West, from
the “petrochemical horrors” of Houston to the Yaak Valley in the
far northwestern corner of Montana. But his cross-country migration
is merely a starting point for the musings in Why I Came
West. The book serves as a study in contrasts,
particularly those inside Bass himself. He writes of far-flung
interests and opinions that at times appear to diverge, but in the
end come together – his environmental activism and his personal,
spiritual need for wild places intertwining with his love of
hunting and his support for sustainable small-scale logging.
A geologist-turned-writer, Bass charts his own life
history – his career, his activism, and his emotional ups and downs
– as if he’s exploring some halfway-mysterious terrain. In his
distinctive, and at times baroque, prose style, he tackles the
rough-and-tumble realities of the West. Ultimately, the focal point
of his story is his personal push for federal wilderness
designation for the Yaak’s last roadless areas. He describes a
mighty, sometimes anger-stoked struggle, and at times questions
whether it has been worth all it has cost him. His passion is
striking, but his storytelling is often opaque and his attitude
pessimistic. By the end of Why I Came West,
however, Bass attains a sunny note as he marks the “eve of success”
for a wilderness area in his beloved Yaak. The preservation of this
area, he believes, portends a political sea change not just in
Montana, but for the entire country.
Bass often writes of
his desire to return to where he began – not geographically, in
East Texas, but in literary terms. He started out as a writer of
short fiction, but the 20-odd years he spent held “hostage in
assisting in the defense of the Yaak” have kept him from that work.
Once the Yaak is officially wilderness, he writes, “I could go back
to my other life – if it still waits there for me.” At times,
Bass’s longing for a different life, one in which environmental
activism would have taken a backseat to writing short stories, can
be frustrating to the reader. Still, Why I Came
West makes it clear that Bass is destined to continue
blazing a powerful trail of words.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline A life of words and wilderness.
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