Subscribe
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Menu
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events

Emily Ruskovich: Rising star

in News
Outlaw Partnersby Outlaw Partners
April 21, 2017

By Doug Hare EBS Staff

Growing up in the Hoodoo Mountains in the panhandle of Idaho, Emily Ruskovich came to love the beauty, isolation and danger of rural living. Recounting her childhood in a strange, hostile landscape in a February interview with Electric Literature, Ruskovich said, “I remember that one day, our half-built chicken house simply disappeared. Even the cinderblocks that formed the foundation, all of it gone.”

Now a creative writing professor at the University of Colorado Denver, Ruskovich wrote the first chapter of her first novel as a graduate student while in the universally acclaimed University of Iowa MFA program. Another of her first short stories, “Owl,” won the O. Henry Prize, widely regarded as America’s highest honor for short fiction.

Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad Article Inline Ad

Set in a fictional town in the northern part of the state, her debut novel “Idaho” hit bookshelves last year and has been garnering national attention ever since. In the same vein as Toni Morrison’s “Beloved,” it is a story about an unspeakable tragedy that transforms into a story about finding love, grace and compassion amid grief, sorrow and despair.

It is a murder mystery, a romantic thriller, and an exploration of the fragility of memory and imagination in shaping the narratives of our lives. Centered around the relationship of Ann and Wade, a British piano teacher and a man slipping into early-onset dementia, “Idaho” spans four decades and is told in a non-linear fashion. It moves back and forth, mimicking the way the past is constantly intruding on the present.

One day while collecting firewood, Wade’s first wife Jenny murdered their 6-year-old daughter May with a hatchet, and their second daughter June ran off into the woods, never to be seen again. As Ann attempts to figure out what could have caused such a senseless, horrendous act, we are treated to a lyrical exploration of loss and wrenching search for consolation and hope.

From chapter to chapter, the changing perspectives of various narrators are reminiscent of William Faulkner’s classic “As I Lay Dying.” With a stroke of brilliance, one daring chapter is narrated by a bloodhound: “Off duty, head up, the bloodhound is a different dog. The wrinkles fall open. The forehead is smoothed, the scent let go. This is how the dog forgets. This is how a dog moves on. He lifts his head.”

While the book might be considered slow moving by some, the poetic, rhythmic prose never feels indulgent or excessive. To write beautifully about a heinous act of violence is proof of Ruskovich’s raw talent. “Idaho” might be dark, haunting, and melancholic in tone, but in the end this book has much to teach us about how to deal with guilt, loss and forgiveness.

Doug Hare is the Distribution Director for Outlaw Partners. He studied philosophy and American literature at Princeton and Harvard universities.

Outlaw Realty Outlaw Realty
Outlaw Realty
ADVERTISEMENT

Listen

Hoary Marmot Podcast

Joe Borden & Michele Veale Borden

Lastest Episode
See More Episodes

Upcoming Events

Jun 14
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

Jun 15
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

Jun 16
9:00 am - 12:00 pm Event Series

Community Hike Big Sky

Jun 16
11:00 am - 5:00 pm Event Series

June Show at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery

Jun 16
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm Event Series

Al-Anon Support Group

View Calendar
Event Calendar

Related Posts

Big Sky seasonal worker welcome party draws a crowd
Local

Big Sky seasonal worker welcome party draws a crowd

June 13, 2025
Discovery Academy launches new Ski Enrichment Program
Featured

Discovery Academy launches new Ski Enrichment Program

June 11, 2025
Bozeman commission considers providing legal help to city’s renters
News

Bozeman commission considers providing legal help to city’s renters

May 23, 2025
Big Sky May 6 election results
Featured

Big Sky May 6 election results

May 6, 2025

An Outlaw Partners Publication

Facebook-f Instagram X-twitter Youtube

Explore Big Sky

  • About/Contact
  • Advertise
  • Publications
  • Subscriptions
  • Podcast
  • Submissions

Outlaw Brands

  • Mountain Outlaw
  • Plan Yellowstone
  • Big Sky PBR
  • Wildlands Music
  • Outlaw Partners
  • Outlaw Realty
  • Hey Bear

Copyright © 2025 Explore Big Sky | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Your Privacy Choices

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Yellowstone
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Real Estate
  • Events

©2024 Outlaw Partners, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Explore Big Sky Logo
  • News
    • Local
    • Regional
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Outlaw Partners
  • Arts & Entertainment
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Yellowstone
  • Events
Subscribe
Facebook X-twitter Instagram Youtube