“Purdy delicately limns the consequences of modern expansion in elegiac and poetic terms. . . . Yet this remains a thoughtful and compelling investigation of the mercilessness of modern capitalism and its indifference to the human costs of progress. A sensitive portrayal of modernity’s discontents.” Kirkus Reviews



Life-long friends and veterans of war, Clay and Tom settle into their ideal lives, fishing the rugged, picturesque coastline of the Pacific Northwest during its annual salmon runs. Haunting local bars, trekking the rainforest of coastal mountains, feasting on local abundance with friends and lovers, they seem destined to carry on longstanding traditions of generations who have aligned their lives to the land and sea in a small, bucolic fishing port. That is, until a corporate consortium builds a fish hatchery and processing plant in its bay, at a time when the ill effects of climate change and depleting resources conspire to rupture the community’s fabric. The tensions, violence, and intrigue that result threaten to bring it all crashing down.

As a writer, John L. Purdy narrates dramas found in landscapes and communities far from the beaten path, where lifeways provide essential lessons that reveal our true place in a world teetering on the brink of ecological catastrophe. As a filmmaker, he explores the ways writers and poets entice readers into a pleasing intimacy with place, a rejuvenated relationship with the world around them.