“In The Distance” Book Discussion | Oakland

Submitted by the Event Organizer

East Bay Booksellers welcomes you to The Diesel Readers Book Group discussion of In the Distance, by Hernan Diaz.

“The Western as American myth is no new thing, but rarely has it been done so well, or been so well subverted. Hernan Diaz’s story of Hakan, a young Swedish immigrant forced to fend for himself in the American West of the latter 1800s, is a coming-of-age tale, a picaresque, and a tale of survival that is simply epic.” — Chris

A young Swedish immigrant finds himself penniless and alone in California. The boy travels East in search of his brother, moving on foot against the great current of emigrants pushing West. Driven back again and again, he meets naturalists, criminals, religious fanatics, swindlers, Indians, and lawmen, and his exploits turn him into a legend. Diaz defies the conventions of historical fiction and genre, offering a probing look at the stereotypes that populate our past and a portrait of radical foreignness.

The Diesel Readers are an ongoing group, and is open to all.

Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.