Badland

• Jerry (Jamie Draven) was an idealist when he served in the first Gulf War. But when he was later deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq, Jerry was an older man, a father of three and embittered by broken promises and unfulfilled desires. When Jerry returns from Iraq he has been transformed by horrors that cannot be forgiven. He lives a life of poverty, his children afraid of him and his wife, Nora (Vine

A New York Times Editors' Choice for Book of the Year
Winner of the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award
Winner of the PEN West Creative Nonfiction Award


"No one has evoked with greater power the marriage of land and sky that gives this country both its beauty and its terror. "
--Washington Post Book World

In 1909 maps still identified eastern Montana as the Great American Desert.  But in that year Congress, lobbied heavily by railroad companies, offered 320-acre tracts o! f land to anyone bold or foolish enough to stake a claim to them. Drawn by shamelessly inventive brochures, countless homesteaders--many of them immigrants--went west to make their fortunes. Most failed. In Bad Land, Jonathan Raban travels through the unforgiving country that was the scene of their dreams and undoing, and makes their story come miraculously alive.    

In towns named Terry, Calypso, and Ismay (which changed its name to Joe, Montana, in an effort to attract football fans), and in the landscape in between, Raban unearths a vanished episode of American history, with its own ruins, its own heroes and heroines, its own hopeful myths and bitter memories. Startlingly observed, beautifully written, this book is a contemporary classic of the American West.

"Exceptional. . . .  A beautifully told historical meditation. "
--Time

"Championship prose. . . .  In fifty years don't be surprised if Bad Land is a landmark."
--Los Angeles T! imesJonathan Raban ambles and picks his way across the Montana! prairie , called "The Great American Desert" until Congress offered 320-acre tracts of barren land to immigrants with stardust in their eyes. Raban's prose makes love to the waves of land, red dirt roads, and skeletons of homesteads that couldn't survive the Dirty Thirties. As poignant as any romance novel, there's heartbreak in the failed dreams of the homesteaders, a pang of destiny in the arbitrary way railroad towns were thrown into existence, and inspiration in the heroism of people who've fashioned lives for themselves by cobbling together homes from the ruined houses of those who couldn't make it. Through it all, Raban's voice examines and honors the vast open expanses of land and pays homage to the histories of families who eked out an existence.It’s been three years since a devastating pandemic transformed most of the world’s human population into vicious, wild animals. Ed Brady and his two sons rely solely on each other in order to survive in a world compl! etely devoid of stability and structure. Their goal: reach the city by the river, where they may have some chance of finding salvation.

As they travel across the wasteland that was once the Midwestern United States, they encounter other survivors along the way. As their paths inevitably intertwine, Ed must remain steadfast that his sworn mission to see that his boys know safety and happiness is not compromised. Surrounded by the constant threat of attack by infected humans, can Ed and his sons make it to the city before their luck runs out? And, if they can, what will be waiting for them there when they arrive?

Into The Badlands is a fast-paced, post-apocalyptic thriller that will take readers on a desperate journey for salvation through the wasted remains of a land overrun with the stuff of nightmares.

(Approx. 84,000 words)

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A Note From the Author:

What is often conspicuously absent from these product de! scriptions is a personal message from the author to the potent! ial read er. Why did I write this book? What am I trying to say? And, maybe most importantly, why will you, the reader, want to purchase this book?

I have two small children. As a parent my job is to teach them the difference between right and wrong, and to instill within them the virtues of hard work and determination.

Our protagonist in this novel, Ed, must also do this, but he must do this in a world that’s been completely decimated by the worst pandemic in history. Infected humans are now raving “zombies”, devoid of emotion and conscience, viciously killing anyone who gets in their way. Every day is a desperate struggle for survival.

This really isn’t a “shoot-em up” zombie book. Sure, there are “zombies”, guns, and gory deaths. There are wasted towns and cities. Ultimately, however, this book is more about retaining one’s humanity when the rest of the world has lost it. It’s about never giving up hope. It’s about a father’! s unfaltering devotion to his children. It’s about perseverance. It’s about holding on to the things that make us human, no matter what the cost.

I believe the story within “Into the Badlands” embodies these concepts, and based on the reviews it seems to be resonating with readers. In the end this is what every writer wants.

So if you liked “The Road”, “The Walking Dead”, or “28 Days Later” then you might enjoy this book as well. If you decide to purchase a copy I’d be much obliged if you left a review, good or bad. That helps me a bunch. Thanks for your interest!It’s been three years since a devastating pandemic transformed most of the world’s human population into vicious, wild animals. Ed Brady and his two sons rely solely on each other in order to survive in a world completely devoid of stability and structure. Their goal: reach the city by the river, where they may have some chance of finding salvation.

As they tra! vel across the wasteland that was once the Midwestern United S! tates, t hey encounter other survivors along the way. As their paths inevitably intertwine, Ed must remain steadfast that his sworn mission to see that his boys know safety and happiness is not compromised. Surrounded by the constant threat of attack by infected humans, can Ed and his sons make it to the city before their luck runs out? And, if they can, what will be waiting for them there when they arrive?

Into The Badlands is a fast-paced, post-apocalyptic thriller that will take readers on a desperate journey for salvation through the wasted remains of a land overrun with the stuff of nightmares.

(Approx. 84,000 words)

â€"

A Note From the Author:

What is often conspicuously absent from these product descriptions is a personal message from the author to the potential reader. Why did I write this book? What am I trying to say? And, maybe most importantly, why will you, the reader, want to purchase this book?

I have two small children. As a p! arent my job is to teach them the difference between right and wrong, and to instill within them the virtues of hard work and determination.

Our protagonist in this novel, Ed, must also do this, but he must do this in a world that’s been completely decimated by the worst pandemic in history. Infected humans are now raving “zombies”, devoid of emotion and conscience, viciously killing anyone who gets in their way. Every day is a desperate struggle for survival.

This really isn’t a “shoot-em up” zombie book. Sure, there are “zombies”, guns, and gory deaths. There are wasted towns and cities. Ultimately, however, this book is more about retaining one’s humanity when the rest of the world has lost it. It’s about never giving up hope. It’s about a father’s unfaltering devotion to his children. It’s about perseverance. It’s about holding on to the things that make us human, no matter what the cost.

I believe the story within “Int! o the Badlands” embodies these concepts, and based on the re! views it seems to be resonating with readers. In the end this is what every writer wants.

So if you liked “The Road”, “The Walking Dead”, or “28 Days Later” then you might enjoy this book as well. If you decide to purchase a copy I’d be much obliged if you left a review, good or bad. That helps me a bunch. Thanks for your interest!BADLAND - DVD Movie