The Hermit's Story
by Rick Bass
The Hermit's Story is Rick Bass's best and most varied fiction yet, "the work of a seasoned author in full possession of his art and craft" (Denver Post). In this story collection, Bass explores the mysterious and near-mythical connections between man and nature. In the title story, a man and a woman travel beneath the frozen surface of a dry lake; in "The Cave," a couple passes a magical afternoon in an abandoned mine; in "Swans," a woman lights fires along the shore of a freezing pond to warm the five swans living there. The characters in each of these ten stories try to seek out the marrow of life. "[A] fully realized collection of the highest quality" (Baltimore Sun), The Hermit's Storyshows Rick Bass at the top of his form.