July – Booklist
Montana is a beautiful and wild place. Home to some of the world’s most famous National Parks, and a rich Western tradition, it captures the imagination and embodies the adventurer’s spirit. Join us in exploring books that celebrate the culture and history of this great state!
Fiction
English Creek by Ivan Doig
Set in 1930s Montana, this coming-of-age story follows fourteen-year-old Jick McCaskill as he recounts a pivotal summer marked by his older brother Alec’s rebellion and his own adventures counting sheep with his forest-ranger father. As Jick experiences escapades and drama, he discovers his deep connection to the land, history, and the profound mysteries of family and self. This book is the first in a series, if you like it, explore more about the McCaskill family.
Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larsen
Montana, 1918-, and 16-year-old Hattie Brooks summons the courage to leave Iowa and move all by herself to Vida, Montana, to prove up on her late uncle’s homestead claim. Under the big sky Hattie braves hard weather and hard times, persevering until an unforeseen tragedy causes her to search her soul for the real meaning of home. Written for younger readers, but a wonderful story for all ages.
A Death in Eden by Keith McCafferty
In this haunting mystery, ominous scarecrows protesting a copper mine appear along Montana’s Smith River, drawing the attention of state investigator Harold Little Feather. Meanwhile, fishing guide Sean Stranahan leads a float trip with the mine manager and the president of “Save Our Smith,” both of whom share a complex and dark past. When a body is discovered, the investigation unearths deeper secrets connected to the mine, the river, and the intertwined lives of those involved. Contains violence and some strong language. This book is part of the Sean Stranahan mystery series if you want to read more.
You Belong Here Now by Dianna Rostad
In 1925, three young New York orphans embark on an orphan train heading west to Montana, seeking new homes. They eventually arrive at a Montana ranch where the brusque Nara, initially rejects them, fearing they will hinder her aspirations to run the cattle operation. However, as the children show resilience and Nara begins to soften, she ultimately risks everything she holds dear to protect them from their past and an unjust system.
Nonfiction
Hell Creek Montana: America’s Key to the Prehistoric Past by Dingus Lowell
Hell Creek, Montana holds an extraordinary place in the history of North America. This quiet locale is renowned as the site of the first-ever Tyrannosaurus Rex discovery, and its geological formations, specifically the Hell Creek Formation, are rich with fossils spanning 200 million years. Beyond paleontology, Hell Creek has witnessed significant historical events, from the Lewis and Clark expedition to the Battle of Little Bighorn, cementing its role as a pivotal setting in both natural and human history.
Brothers on Three: A True Family, Resistance, and Hope on a Reservation in Montana by Abe Streep
This award-winning true story, a journalist describes a momentous basketball season on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Arlee, Montana. In 2017, despite high local suicide rates and a population struggling with poverty and addiction, the Arlee Warriors would finally bring home the high school basketball state championship title. Contains some strong language.
High Trails of Glacier National Park by Margaret Thompson
Historical guidebook to Glacier National Park. Interlacing this “backbone of the world” is a network of trails, leading from valley to valley, back and forth across the backbone, threading every pass, ascending and descending seemingly unscalable walls, solving the riddle of a challenging wilderness.
Montana Campfire Tales: Fourteen Historical Narratives by David Walter
No one knew more about Montana’s history than the late, great Dave Walter, staff historian for the Montana Historical Society, and no one told the state’s stories with more eloquence, humor, and accuracy. This new edition of the classic Montana Campfire Tales encourages readers to gather around the campfire as Walter revisits key moments in Montana’s history.
Image Description: Wild Goose Island in Glacier National Park. A beautiful, clear glacier lake is framed in the valley by rugged mountains in the background and rugged brush and pines in the foreground.