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The 2024 Richmond Reads Selection: ‘The Last Ranger’ by Peter Heller

By Press Release
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Photo of Genesee County ACORNs volunteer Pete Stanbridge reading a passage from the book at the title reveal event on Monday, June 24 at RML.
Submitted photo.

Press Release:

The Richmond Memorial Library and the Richmond Reads Committee are proud to announce The Last Ranger by Peter Heller as the 2024 Richmond Reads selection. The selection was announced in a special event at the library on Monday, June 24 at 7 p.m.

Richmond Reads is a community one-book program designed specifically for the Richmond Memorial Library community. The goal of the program is for the community to join together in reading the chosen title, and then to participate in subsequent discussions and programs. Each year, the Richmond Reads committee reads countless books, searching for the perfect community read.

The Last Ranger was published in July 2023 by Alfred A. Knopf. When a conflict between a local poacher and a wildlife biologist turns violent, Yellowstone Park Ranger Ren Hopper must determine what really happened while battling his own personal demons in this literary thriller by bestselling author Heller.

“We always look for something unique, something that will really engage many different types of readers,” shared Community and Adult Services Librarian Samantha Stryker. “This novel is many genres rolled into one- mystery, thriller, environmental, literary. The beautiful nature writing absolutely resonated with our committee and we hope our readers will find it equally impactful.”

Peter Heller is the best-selling author of The Last Ranger, The Guide, The River, Celine, The Painter, and The Dog Stars, which has been published in twenty-two languages. He is a longtime contributor to NPR, and a former contributing editor at Outside Magazine, Men’s Journal, and National Geographic Adventure. Peter is also the author of four books of literary nonfiction. 

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Peter Heller, author
Photo by John Burcham.

Heller was born and raised in New York. He attended high school in Vermont and Dartmouth College in New Hampshire where he became an outdoorsman and whitewater kayaker. He holds an MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop in poetry and fiction and lives in Denver, Colorado.  His latest novel, Burn, will be released in August 2024.

Peter Heller will visit the Richmond Memorial Library on Thursday, October 24 for an author visit and book signing. There will be book discussions and other programs as the date gets closer. In the meantime, readers are encouraged to borrow or purchase the book!

Copies are available to borrow at the library in regular print, large print, and as an audiobook or eBook on Libby. Copies are also available to purchase for $20 for hardcover and $15 for paperback. Copies of select other titles by Heller are also available to purchase at the library for $15 each. Visit the library or batavialibrary.org/richmond-reads for all information!

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