Books
A Memoir: Love and Terror on the Howling Plains of Nowhere
A Memoir
FOR READERS OF IN COLD BLOOD AND MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVILThis work of true crime as memoir is as much of an investigation of a shocking murder as it is a portrait of small-town Americaand the folks that make their homes there—and a deeply moving examination of parenting an autistic child
For well over twenty years, Poe Ballantine traveled America, taking odd jobs, living in small rooms, trying to make a living as a writer. At age 46, he finally settled with his Mexican immigrant wife in Chadron, Nebraska, where they built a family with their son, who was red-flagged as autistic.
But this quiet life is disruptd when one day in 2006, his neighbor, Steven Haataja, a math professor from the local state college, disappears. Ninety-five days later, the professor was found bound to a tree, burned to death in the hills behind the campus where he had taught. No one, law enforcement included, understood the circumstances. Though Ballantine had never contemplated writing mystery or true crime, this murder was too close to home to ignore.
With this intimate knowledge—and occasional friendships—with all the players, the suspects, the sheriff, and the police involved, Ballantine and his son set out together to find out what might have happened to the professor and uncover who is ultimately responsible.
A Bike Odyssey from Alaska to Argentina: Joy Ride
A Bike Odyssey from Alaska to Argentina
Two strangers who fell in love underwater bicycle 18,000 brutal miles from Alaska to Argentina, and discover that endurance will get you pretty far, but human kindness can carry you the rest of the wayExplorers Kristen and Ville Jokinen met and fell in love while scuba diving in Vietnam. Ville then left his native Finland to join Kristen in Oregon and together they embarked on a life-changing two-year cycling adventure covering 18,000 miles from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to Ushuaia, Argentina.
Despite never having cycled further than around the block, they persevered unrelenting, punishing rain and wind, altitude sickness, dog attacks, bike accidents, and countless flat tires to cycle between the ends of the earth. Believing that kindness connects us to our shared humanity, they held babies, attended quinceañeras, drank pulque, played soccer, and visited schools. People in Mexico, Central America, and South America invited them into their hearts and homes, allowed them to camp in their fields and farms, and acted as personal tour guides. Kristen and Ville are love on wheels, and who doesn’t need a little more love in their lives?