The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (Penguin, $15). The Joad family always haunts me: hollow faces determined to survive the utter ravage of the Dust Bowl. Their Great Depression–era journey down “The Road of Flight”—Route 66—is seminal American reading.
You Can’t Go Home Again by Thomas Wolfe (Perennial, $16). Nobody captured the sad, lonely essence of America like the great Thomas Wolfe. His description of an honest writer being treated like a dancing bear for the New York set is unforgettable.
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The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer (Vintage, $17). A chilling story of Gary Gilmore’s life before and after death row. Mailer captures the sparse Utah landscape like a master painter. His descriptive detail—and pitch-perfect dialogue—rings truer than a Sam Shepard play, and that is saying a lot.
On the Road by Jack Kerouac (Penguin, $14). I was handed this novel in high school while working at a Holiday Inn in Perrysburg, Ohio. My favorite passages are when Kerouac raps about various Western places like Denver, Los Angeles, and the wilds of Montana.
A Fan’s Notes by Frederick Exley (Vintage, $15). A drunken frolic through the football-drenched bars of Watertown, N.Y. Every sentence is perfectly written. An underappreciated literary gem.
The collected works of Theodore Roosevelt
The Wilderness Hunter
Outdoor Pastimes
African Game Trails
Through the Brazilian Wilderness
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