Reading The Jump-Off Creek
Once upon a time Andy and I spent ten days on the coast of Suriname doing sea turtle research. Walking miles of empty coastline a couple of times a day and counting sea turtle nests. Sitting close enough to a mama digging her nest that she flung sand into my lap. There were plenty of mosquitoes, but we were the only people for miles around. On the boat out to the remote site, we saw river dolphins and flying fish.
We brought boxes of shelf stable food, candles and kerosine, a bucket of books. One of them was The Jump-Off Creek by Molly Gloss. This wondrous book tells the story of a widowed woman homesteading alone in Oregon. It was a revelation to read this utterly local book in such an extraordinarily out of the way place.
Fishtrap is hosting a read along of The Jump-Off Creek. On Wednesday, February 15, you can hear Molly Gloss introduce her novel. All month there will be additional free presentations related to the novel. I really can’t think of a better way to spend the month!