Heart Earth

HEART EARTH (published 1993) is an autobiographical coda to Ivan Doig's 1978 memoir of growing up in Montana, "This House of Sky". Presumably Doig wrote "This House of Sky" to be an integral, whole work, but years after publishing it he recovered a stash of letters his mother wrote to her brother, at sea in the Pacific, during the last year of WWII. Doig uses those letters as the springboard for fleshing out more of his memoir of his early years and his parents, as well as a few others who were significant presences in and influences on his life. Like "This House of Sky", HEART EARTH is an affectionate tale of decent, hard-working folks, ekeing out an existence in a grand yet fiercely challenging pocket of this country, and even though a coda of sorts, HEART EARTH can stand alone. Through one of the serendipities of life, I read HEART EARTH first, years ago in fact. Recently I read "This House of Sky" for the first time, which prompted me to re-read HEART EARTH. Based on that experience, I strongly advise readers who have not yet read either book to read HEART EARTH first. It is the better-written book, and reading it before "This House of Sky" will generate more of an emotional wallop.

Another wonderful tale by western author Ivan Doig. Washington Post rates Doig as one of the 'finest writers' in America today. He is the ONLY author who made the San Francisco Chronicle's TOP 100 fictional and TOP 100 non-fictional best Western Novels of the 20th century lists. This is another fine Ivan Doig work. If you like it, and I bet you will, try his TRILOGY series of his fictionalized biographical family settling into the TWO MEDICINE high country of Montana from Scotland in the 19th century. Fabulous writing, poetical prose and a great set of tales. "Dancing at the Rascal Fair" is #1 followed by "English Creek", my favorite. I have given Doig books as gifts to many, many people and they all say: "Who is this author? Did not know him and he is absolutely wonderful!" "Heart Earth" is a nice way to get into Doig's writing, but there are many more of his works to enjoy, too. Buy one and you will get hooked! Professor Peter B. Liebowitz

As a sometime writer, I am always humbled by Ivan Doig's rapturous rendering of human experience in the written word. His love of language is a perfect match for the sense of wonder he brings to whatever he's writing about, and he can spin what is often a simple idea into a lengthy interweaving of carefully observed details and nuances of feeling and gentle humor. He does that here with a handful of letters written by his mother from Arizona and Montana to her brother on board a Navy destroyer in the Pacific during the closing months of WWII. They are also her own last months, dying as she does of heart failure in a high altitude sheep camp where she has been spending a summer with her husband and young son, the author. Doig generates pages of meaning and significance from single sentences in her letters, notably recreating one of her last days, herding sheep on horseback and alone, while husband and son travel to nearby Bozeman. This is a short book compared to his other fiction and nonfiction, really more like an appendix to his memoir of growing up, "This House of Sky." It captures almost worshipfully the day-to-day reality of people living proudly and with determination on the margins of a rural wartime economy only beginning to recover from the Great Depression. Enjoyable also is Doig's gift for replicating the wry humor in the way they deal with and talk about life's vagaries. Highly recommended to readers of his other books, this is also an excellent introduction to Doig for those who haven't read him yet.

After reading HEART EARTH for the third time, I find that I am still amazed and touched by Ivan Doig's gift. His words, and the way his phrases flow move me, and I am thankful for the many hours I have spent immersed in Mr. Doig's Montana. Although Heart Earth is basically a tale of discovery (or rediscovery), it is also a tale of hope, love and the eternal connection between a child and a parent, no matter what the circumstances or how far the distance in miles or years. If you've never read anything by this author, do yourself a favor: read every one of his books. Buy them in hardcover, keep them safe, and re-read them again and again. I have a special shelf in my personal library for his books, and I treasure every one of them. Thank you, Mr. Doig, for sharing your gift with me.

This was my first Ivan Doig book, and after finishing it I immediately picked up This House of Sky. That the story springs forth from his mother's letters seems a fitting start for my experience with Ivan's books, to see how her moments of letter writing have spun themselves out through the words of her son in this book. The easy flow of his writing and the heart and feeling that flows with it (the little boy *kiting* down the prickly peared hill in Arizona) makes it great art--taking form as though it were always meant to be that way--unforced and uncontrived, as natural and beautiful as the Montana and the people he introduces us to. And I appreciate Ivan's own contributions to these review forums. As in this book and the House of Sky book, the love comes through. I have read both twice now (which I seldom do) and intend to keep them as a part of my library (which I also seldom do). I'm so glad I have found this writer and his books. Thank you, Ivan Doig, for sharing with us.