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Kurt Johnsongrew up spending summers on a remote island near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, first with his parents and later with his wife, Stephanie, and then their daughter, Ellie. He lives in Minneapolis. Ellie Johnson paddled the 450-mile Thelon River with three other women at the age of seventeen. The novel is based in part on that canoe trip as well as her real-life experiences growing up as a gay woman. Ellie is a recent graduate of the University of Minnesota and lives in St. Paul.
The Barrens grabbed me from the opening pages and never let go. A riveting adventure story written by a father-daughter team who clearly have wilderness chops. --Michael Punke, author of The Revenant A poignant and engaging thriller with a formidable lead character . . . a vibrant, tender novel of love, loss, stamina, and self-discovery. --Kirkus Reviews A deeply compelling tale, told in vivid, elegant but concise prose, The Barrens carried me along, swiftly as the river at the heart of the story. The central character, Lee, will break your heart, although she'll have none of it. Love, loss, life, and death, against a landscape as raw and ancient as the human heart. Most highly recommended. --Jeffrey Lent, author of In the Fall The Barrens is the raw and moving story of two young women paddling by canoe down one of North America's most remote rivers--of their coming of age, their love, and terrible loss. I've rarely come across a text that is so visual, and so tangible. The Barrens is a vivid portrayal of the Canadian subarctic, and of the human drive to persevere. --Alex Messenger, author of The Twenty-Ninth Day: Surviving a Grizzly Attack in the Canadian Tundra The Barrens is a bravura work, propulsive in its storytelling, simultaneously economical and fulsome, and as restrained as it is brimming with unspoken wisdom. It demands a wide audience. --Peter Geye, Minnesota Book Award winner for Wintering As harrowing as the whitewater adventure it chronicles, The Barrens is an epic tale of wilderness survival and death in the techno age. The writing throbs with presence: the life-force embedded in Canada's northern frontier landscape and in the life-scape of its queer young heroine as she journeys toward selfhood. Co-authors Kurt and Ellie Johnson reveal the pulse of identity, born of the stories we weave. A mesmerizing, devastating read. --Carol Bruneau, author of Brighten the Corner Where You Are: A Novel Inspired by the Life of Maud Lewis Armchair adventurers and outdoors people alike will enjoy the immersive reading experience that this novel offers, based on the experiences of the coauthor's own 450-mile trek on the Thelon River at the age of seventeen. The Barrens is a Miramichi Reader Pick for an exceptional book that was authored and published outside of Canada. --Miramichi Reader
