Sandy Compton | Archer MacClehan and The Hungry Now

Published: January 20, 2009

A grouchy old grizzly and a quintet of hikers converge in Sandy Compton’s fast-paced novel, set in the fictional Sky Devil Wilderness along the Idaho-Montana border.

“Lead dog” Archer MacClehan and his two pals, Jesse and Tom, escort a pair of greenhorns on an arduous hike, made more complex by repeated encounters with the fabled old bear Number Seven, and a budding attraction between MacClehan and the red-headed, hot-tempered Sara.

Compton moves deftly from the interior worlds of his characters (including the bear, who resides perpetually in The Hungry Now, except when he’s sleeping or hibernating), to the fauna, flora and geologic terrain that challenge, pummel and elate the trekkers. As the strengths and vulnerability of each hiker are revealed, Jesse aptly tells Sara, “Life is served raw in wild country.”

Compton grew up along the border between western Montana and northern Idaho, and describes himself as an avid world traveler, backpacker, skier and admirer of both bears and wilderness. His MacClehan book is the first in a series of stories starring the intrepid adventurer; he’s also the author of Jason’s Passage, Caleb’s Miracle and the forthcoming memoir, Side Trips From Cowboy.

The novel is published by Blue Creek Press in Heron, MT, and sells for $14 softcover.

– Kristi Niemeyer