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Mark also found unsatisfying the fact that in spite of all Ann’s speculations – and all her various and vivid mental recreations of the murder scene – she never comes to know why or even exactly how the murder happened, and neither do we, the readers. I suggested that the book’s message is that the truth is sometimes just unknowable, but the fact is that most of us had found unsatisfying the way the book prompted us into speculations like those of the character Ann, only to have them frustrated. Finally John made the comment that usually when we discuss a book we come to a greater understanding of it, but that the more we discussed this book the less sense we made of it. We now began a detailed discussion about this matter. With regard to this, one aspect of the book in particular took our attention. Although Ann’s speculations dominate the book, there are in fact passages outside of her consciousness, and which take the viewpoint of other characters. Thus we have an evident authorial consciousness which we would expect to know things of which not all the characters are aware, including of course the truth about the murder. The second part or chapter of the book begins with a new character, Elizabeth, a prisoner who eventually comes to share a cell with the character Jenny, and later in the prison scenes – scenes where Mark said his engagement with the book waned – we move into the viewpoint of Jenny herself. Never, however, in the conscious moments of the imprisoned Jenny that we share, does she once even think about the murder. It might seem obvious to argue that she is repressing the memory, but there is no apparent authorial indication of this. Indeed, there is an implication that she is suffering a self-imposed penance – for a long time never leaving her cell for exercise, for instance, and choosing to remain doing the most menial prison task – which would imply perhaps that her guilt, and therefore the murder, are overwhelmingly central for her. Authorial withholding of the information in these passages therefore seemed to us tricksy.One striking speculation of the character Ann’s left one member of our group convinced of its accuracy, so vividly was it told. The way that Ann and Wade had met was over a problem with nine-year-old June at the school where Ann was the music teacher, after which Wade began coming to Ann’s schoolroom for piano lessons. Ann imagines Jenny, having guessed that something was developing between them, sitting in the truck for a break on the day of the murder, joined by her younger daughter May, and flipping when May begins singing the song that Ann has taught Wade to play, and turning in a moment of mad jealousy and swinging the hatchet at May’s head. However, that did not seem to me a convincing motive for any mother, leave alone for Jenny: there is a striking section which is not in Ann’s head but is authorially conveyed, so that we may take it as fact, in which Jenny is portrayed as a particularly understanding and empathic mother, empathising deeply with May who has been rejected by June, and eager to distract and comfort her.

There was general agreement that this book is beautifully written on the level of the prose. The depiction of Ann’s interiority is impressive and moving and the descriptions of the natural world spectacular, and Clare, accompanied by nodding agreement, pointed to the amazingly truthful portrayal of childhood in scenes between the two girls June and May. However, there was disagreement about the book’s structure. It is strikingly non-linear, moving constantly back and forth between various time levels, and eventually into a future beyond our own present. Mark, agreed with by some others, said that he found this structure confusing, and constantly needed to check back to find out which incident had actually happened before another. Our Jenny and I, however, weren’t so negative: although I agreed that it was sometimes a bit hard to keep up, the fragmented structure admirably replicates the workings of Ann’s speculating and remembering mind, as well perhaps as the mental fragmentation caused by dementia. Few in our group however entertained any notion other than that Jenny had indeed, for some unfathomable reason, killed May. Our member Ann and I however had both wondered at times if in fact the murderer was June, the nine-year-old runaway sister and daughter, and that Jenny had covered for her by confessing to the murder. We weren’t at all sure, however, as it seemed so unlikely: there didn’t seem enough grounds. Looking back at the book now in order to write this, however, I am wondering more strongly if that was the authorial intention, or at least a deliberate authorial red herring. The character Eliot is surely, however, significant in this matter. He features only briefly and offstage at the start of the novel as the boy with whom June is in love and whom Ann teaches singing and is particularly fond of – a boy everyone falls in love with and who had lost a leg when the jetty at the edge of the lake in the school grounds collapsed beneath him. He suddenly reappears as an adult late on in this lengthy novel, and we share his memories of the accident: his rucksack placed by someone on the jetty, little girls at a table nearby giggling in hero worship at his presence and writing in secret games before getting up for their bus, and the horror for Eliot of falling through and being left alone, stuck all night. However, a girlfriend overturns his view of it all by suggesting to him that maybe the whispering little girls placed the rucksack on the jetty with malicious intent, knowing that he would fall through. Very soon after this in the novel we are witness to a scene between June and May in the woods where they are playing a writing game which is meant as a charm for predicting one’s romantic destiny. June says that she doesn’t need to do the game as she has already chosen her romantic love, whom we can assume is Eliot. As Eliot reassesses his memory, he remembers that there was a piece of paper on the top of his rucksack carrying just this charm game, so we can link June with the little girls by the lake and with Eliot’s accident. It is hard, though, to believe that her motive was malicious, since it is after this that she will leave her gift and passionate note in his locker. Again, the authorial intention may be to show the witch-like character of obsession and its unfortunate consequences, but this does nothing to suggest the likelihood of the kind of violent act that killed May.This debut novel, suggested by Mark, won the 2019 International Dublin Literary Award (for which books are nominated by public libraries worldwide). Its narrative touchstone is an incident in the past of the novel, the hatchet murder of a small child, May, by her mother Jenny, in the family truck, on a seemingly placid and routine family outing to cut trees in a mountainside wood. At this Jenny’s elder, nine-year-old daughter June fled into the woods and has never since been found in spite of years-long dissemination of posters depicting what she might look like as she grows. Jenny, who confessed immediately to the murder, was jailed for life. The focus of the novel, however, is not so much this past incident itself as its aftermath, and in particular the speculations about it by Ann, a teacher in the local school who afterwards married Wade, the father of this lost family. Very soon after their marriage Wade begins showing signs of early onset dementia, which his father suffered before him, and he is now losing his memory, so while Ann feels the need to carry memories of the past for Wade, and naturally wants to understand why the murder happened, the truth of it all is shrouded from her.

In addition, as we were reading the book we found those sections less significant than I may have made them seem here, as they are among other sections that focus on the lives and preoccupations of more peripheral characters – the character Elizabeth who comes to share a cell with Jenny, Wade’s dying father, the childless couple whose house Wade knocks at immediately after the murder, and even the bloodhound who fails to pick up June’s scent in the wood. This last is a piece of quite virtuoso writing, and the short section concerning the childless couple is very moving and a set-piece in itself. Our member Ann said it read like a short story, and both she and John voiced the suspicion that the novel had been compiled by drawing several short stories together, and that this explained what to us was a lack of cohesion and rationale. If it was June who committed the murder this would be a better explanation for why she ran away than the unsatisfactory reasons our group had pondered (Was she just too horrified to stay? Was she afraid of her mother after seeing her kill May? But then why didn’t she run to Wade? And why would she never return – she was only nine, after all? Did something happen to her in the woods to prevent her doing so? So why then was her body never found?) When Jenny is finally released from prison Ann feels the need to look after her by giving her the money that has finally been returned by June Bailey Roe and setting her up with a new life, and critics have seen this as a huge act of forgiveness and redemption (and forgiveness and redemption as the main themes of the book). If Ann suspected that June was really the murderer then this would be a more concrete motive for such an act of restoration. However, I noticed no hint within the text that she does have such a suspicion. Indeed, as far as I remember all of the above hints about June’s potential strangeness occur in the sections that take the viewpoints of others or are located in a more authorial consciousness. While I felt that a lack of rationale in life, the impossibility sometimes of ever knowing the truth, was indeed the point of this novel, and a message that I consider in theory to have integrity, I didn’t feel the sat
isfaction in it that I might have, since the authorial hints and mystifications (deliberate or otherwise, it’s hard to tell) prompted me, like the rest of our group, not to accept this message, but to want the solution that was simply not available. And I think it was this lack of textual redemption that for me made the book unbearably sad. I am normally perfectly happy to read dark books about tragedy, but on this occasion there was no catharsis: once I had finished reading I was left with a feeling of utter bleakness, and nearly all in our group agreed. Though Doug, whom I had expected to like the book for its fine writing, said that he simply hadn’t been able to engage with it at all.The project asks us to think about how we transmit culture from one generation to the next and how difficult it is to imagine what future readers will be like.

Most people reading these book recommendations will not have had to fight for the value of going to school, but we do need to have courage to modify our goals in ways that other people might not like.With a reluctant down-on-love heroine and a hot hero who falls hard and fast and refuses to give up on her, the romance was both steamy and swoon-worthy. Add in the laugh-out-loud moments with a comical but ill-trained dog, an old house under renovation and full of secrets, a small town, and a large cast of characters and this book hit all my hot buttons.

Shepherd is a participant in the Bookshop.org and Amazon Associate Affiliate Programs. As a participant, we may earn from qualifying purchases made on those sites.There is cold, and then there is the unforgiving cold of an Idaho winter. The setting echoes the biting poverty that Jack and his younger brother are forced into by events out of their control. The crimes of his father drag Jack and his brother further into a desperate situation with no safe way out, even with the help of Ava, who has demons of her own. The despair of poverty, the desperation of trying to do the right thing and being forced not to,… When you buy books through our website, we may earn an affiliate commission. Please help us make book discovery magical and join our membership program. The ancient Greek story at the center of the plot is fictional, but the mechanisms of cultural survival are real. It’s a superbly imaginative way of tackling the subject—and way funnier than anything I was able to come up with.

On November 19, police requested the public provide any video of the house that had been recorded the night of the killings. A phone tip line and email were created for students and others to submit potential evidence to officials. As of December 5, it was reported that there had been more than 2,600 emailed tips, 2,700 phone calls, and 1,000 digital media submissions from the public to these tip lines. On December 24, the investigative team reported having received at least 15,000 tips regarding the case.Fall break was scheduled to begin after November 18, with classes resuming on November 28. Many students and other Moscow residents, not trusting the initial assurances of the police and fearing for their own safety, began an early Thanksgiving holiday exodus from the area. Other residents who stayed were anxious and cautious, and a number of professors canceled their classes. Due to weather concerns, the candlelight vigil was moved indoors to the Kibbie Dome and held on the evening of November 30.In the summer of 2022, Kohberger moved to Washington state to pursue a PhD at Washington State University in Pullman; its campus is less than eight miles (13 km) west of Moscow. At the time of the killings, he was a doctoral student in criminology and had completed his first semester there nine days before his arrest. Kohberger had been a teaching assistant at WSU, and less than two weeks before the murders, faculty members met with him to discuss growing concerns about his behavior and conduct. Kohberger was terminated from his teaching assistant role on December 19 with the decision being based on “his unsatisfactory performance as a teaching assistant, including his failure to meet the ‘norms of professional behavior’ in his interactions with the faculty.”On May 17, 2023, the Latah County District Court announced that Kohberger was indicted by a grand jury on five charges: four counts of first degree murder and one count of felony burglary. A preliminary probable cause hearing scheduled for June 26 was canceled after the indictment. In May 2023, Kohberger refused to enter a plea during his arraignment. His attorney said that he was “standing silent” on the charges. The judge entered a ‘not guilty’ plea for him. On June 26, the Latah County Prosecutor’s office announced they were seeking the death penalty given the statutory aggravating circumstances of the first-degree murder charges.

In a November 23 press conference, the Moscow police chief said that authorities had received a number of tips including that Goncalves allegedly had a stalker, but were unable to verify that claim or identify any such individual at that time.The investigation of the stabbings is being conducted by the Moscow Police Department, supported by the Idaho State Police and the Latah County Sheriff’s Office. In all, almost 130 members of law enforcement from the three agencies began working on the case.

The fathers of Goncalves and Chapin criticized the limited flow of information from the police and university to the families of the victims. TikTokers, self-proclaimed psychics, and social media users began to speculate and spread rumors and misinformation about the case on social media. In response the Moscow Police Department criticized Internet sleuths for creating rampant online rumors and disrupting investigations, and in a December 2 news release said: “There is speculation, without factual backing, stoking community fears and spreading false facts.” Moscow Police Captain Roger Lanier said “Tracking down rumors and quelling rumors about specific information and specific events that may not have happened is a huge distraction… We are not releasing specific details as we do not want to compromise the investigation.”

All four students were home by 1:56 am. Seven uncompleted phone calls were made from the phone of Goncalves to her former longtime boyfriend, a fellow student, from 2:26 to 2:52 am. Mogen also called Goncalves’ former boyfriend three times with similar results, from 2:44 to 2:52 am. These calls were investigated with the police concluding they did not believe the recipient of those missed calls was involved in the crime. Kernodle received a DoorDash order around 4 am.In the early morning hours of November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho college students were stabbed to death in a shared rental home close to campus. Two female victims—Madison Mogen and Xana Kernodle—lived at the house, while Kaylee Goncalves recently moved out of the house but returned to the house to attend a nearby party. The fourth victim, Ethan Chapin, was Kernodle’s boyfriend who was sleeping over on the night of the attacks. Two other female roommates also lived at the house; they were not attacked.

Kohberger was arrested on four counts of first-degree murder and one felony count of burglary, was appointed a public defender, and was detained without bond at the Monroe County Correctional Facility in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. On his return to the county courthouse on January 3, 2023, he agreed to extradition. On January 4, he was flown to Pullman, driven to the Latah County jail in Moscow, and held without bail.

Earlier on the evening of November 12, two of the four victims, Chapin and Kernodle, were at an on-campus party at the nearby Sigma Chi fraternity from 8 pm to 9 pm. They returned home at 1:45 am. That evening, the other two victims, best friends Mogen and Goncalves, had gone to The Corner Club, a downtown sports bar at 10 pm, from which they departed at 1:30 am. A livestreamed video on Twitch by The Grub Truck, a food truck four blocks south at Friendship Square (Main and Fourth Streets), showed Mogen and Goncalves at 1:41 am, chatting and smiling, getting their food ten minutes later, and leaving to take what the police initially said was an Uber ride home, a trip of about one mile (1.6 km). The police later rephrased their statement to say the ride was provided by a “private party,” arriving home at 1:56 am.Investigators traced the ownership of this car to a local individual, Bryan Kohberger, who drove it with his father to the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania for the holidays. He was pulled over twice within a nearly five-mile radius by Indiana State Police on Interstate 70 outside Greenfield, Indiana, for speeding and tailgating. The FBI denied allegations that they had directed the Indiana State Police to make the stops. Investigators obtained cellphone data that showed that Kohberger’s phone stopped connecting to the network around 2:47 am in Pullman on November 13 before reconnecting around 4:48 am near Blaine, Idaho, which is near U.S. Highway 95 south of Moscow. Cellphone data also shows that his phone utilized a cell tower near the victims’ residence around 9 am on November 13, approximately five hours after the killings. Police also obtained data that indicated that his phone pinged from the cell phone tower nearest the residence at least 12 times between June 2022 and November 13. Investigators had additionally obtained a sample of DNA from the crime scene that did not belong to any of the victims. The DNA was found on a tan leather knife sheath on Mogen’s bed.Shortly after finishing Pleasant Valley High School in 2013, he attended Monroe Career and Technical Institute in Bartonsville but dropped out a year later. Kohberger later attended Northampton Community College in Bethlehem, where he earned an associate degree in psychology in 2018. After graduating from Northampton, he worked as a security guard for the Pleasant Valley School District, the same school district where his father previously worked as a maintenance worker for many years and his mother for a time as a substitute teacher. He received a B.A. in 2020 and an M.A. in 2022 in Criminal Justice from DeSales University, in Center Valley, Pennsylvania.

On February 24, 2023, University of Idaho president C. Scott Green announced that the house where the killings occurred was donated to the university; the house will be demolished. Scholarships in the name of three of the victims (Kernodle, Chapin, and Mogen) have been created. A memorial garden for the victims on the University of Idaho campus is being planned.

Before the arrest, investigators monitored Kohberger outside of his parents’ Pennsylvania home. He was seen multiple times wearing surgical gloves and observed putting trash bags inside of the garbage can of a neighbor. The items were sent to the Idaho State Lab for testing. Authorities also said Kohberger had “cleaned his car, inside and outside, not missing an inch [of area].” According to authorities, a search of the home where Kohberger was arrested revealed a knife, a pistol, and a black face mask, as well as ID cards inside a glove inside a box.No calls to 911 were made until 11:58 am, many hours after the early morning killings. The call made at that time requested aid for an “unconscious” person, and was placed from within the residence using the cellphone of one of the surviving roommates. When police arrived, the door to the home was open, there was no sign of forced entry or damage inside the home, and nothing appeared to be missing. The two surviving roommates were in the residence when police arrived, as were other friends of the victims. The surviving roommates had called friends over to the home because they believed one of the second-floor victims was unconscious and was not waking up. The identity of the 911 caller was not released, but police confirmed the caller was not considered a suspect.

At the time of his arrest, authorities found Kohberger in the kitchen dressed in a shirt and shorts, while wearing examination gloves and putting trash into separate zip-lock baggies.A surviving roommate who saw the suspect described him as a male stranger around 5 feet 10 inches, and “not very muscular, but athletically built with bushy eyebrows”.

After receiving hundreds of tips from the public, on December 15 police announced they were searching records of approximately 22,000 fifth-generation Hyundai Elantras made between 2011 and 2013. A camera in the area captured video of an Elantra around the time of the murders, which investigators noticed had made multiple passes along the same route near the residence. Another surveillance recording obtained by investigators also showed an Elantra passing by the victims’ home three times, beginning around 3:29 am. At 4:04 am, the Elantra returned to the home for a fourth time. At 4:20 am, the car was seen speeding away from the victims’ neighborhood.A 28-year-old man, Bryan Christopher Kohberger, was taken into custody by an FBI SWAT team and Pennsylvania State Police on December 30 at the home of his parents in Monroe County, Pennsylvania. Kohberger was born on November 21, 1994, in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania.

Several University of Idaho students lived in a rented off-campus home in the rural college town of Moscow, Idaho. The three-story home had six bedrooms, two on each floor.

In the early hours of November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were fatally stabbed in an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho. On December 30, 28-year-old Bryan Christopher Kohberger was arrested in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary.All four victims were pronounced deceased at 12 noon. Detectives believe the killings occurred sometime between 4 am and 4:25 am. That night, officers came upon Goncalves’s dog, which she shared with her ex-boyfriend, alive and unharmed at the house.

Four University of Idaho students were killed: Ethan Chapin, 20, of Conway, Washington; Kaylee Goncalves, 21, of Rathdrum, Idaho; Xana Kernodle, 20, of Avondale, Arizona (she later lived in Post Falls, Idaho); and Madison Mogen, 21, of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Chapin was a freshman, Kernodle was a junior, and Goncalves and Mogen were both seniors.

Over the course of the pandemic, 194% more people moved to Idaho than moved away, according to Business Insider. Boise has attracted remote workers from more expensive cities like San Jose, according to Realtor.com, a real estate listing website. In Moscow, Idaho, a few hours north of Boise, things don’t look much different. Realtor Misty Curry told The Argonaut, a University of Idaho publication, that one of the primary reasons prices in the greater state of Idaho have shot up is this influx of new people.

“I don’t think people realize how badly the construction and housing industry were damaged by the greater recession,” he said, referring to the housing crash more than a decade ago. Homebuilding, which halted after the crash, has only recently resumed, Peterson added.Boise was ranked the best place to live for millennials in 2019 by Livability, which publishes data rankings for U.S. cities, and was named the fastest-growing city in the U.S. in 2018 by Forbes. U.S. News & World Report ranked Boise 11th in its list of best places to live in 2021–22, writing: “Yes, there are wilder places. Yes, there are more urbane places. But Boise is a good place to live if you enjoy easy access to both.”

And the lumber needed to actually catch up and build more housing now costs up to 308% more. That makes the cost of homebuilding significantly more expensive, according to Brian Higgins, executive director of an affordable housing nonprofit in Columbus.All those millennials for which Boise is supposed to be a hotspot are hitting their thirties, the prime age of first-time homebuyers. Along with this new wave of buyers, Boise has attracted a rush of remote workers during the pandemic, ranking third on Apartment List’s collection of the best cities for remote work.

And for all that growing demand, the supply is seriously lacking. On a national scale, the housing market is short almost 4 million homes. This is subsequently a problem in Idaho, said University of Idaho economics professor Steve Peterson, according to The Argonaut.

“Once 2020 hit, we really saw inventory lack due to the mass amount of buyers coming into Idaho. We have so many new buyers moving in, we just can’t help them,” Curry said.The Idaho capital tops a list of overvalued U.S. housing markets, with homes listed 80.51% above their expected price, according to Florida Atlantic University (FAU).

“Based on a true story of the only fatal nuclear accident to occur in America, The Longest Night is a deeply moving novel that explores the intricate makeup of a marriage, the shifting nature of trust, and the ways we try to protect the ones we love.”“The Addisons — Julia and Tonio, ten-year-old Dewey, and derelict Uncle Robbie — are driving home, cross-country, after collecting Robbie from yet another trip to rehab. When a terrifying blizzard strikes outside the town of Good Night, Idaho, they seek refuge in the town at the Travelers Rest, a formerly opulent but now crumbling and eerie hotel where the physical laws of the universe are bent.”

“At the heart of this exciting debut novel, set in Arizona and Idaho in the mid-1970s, is fifteen-year-old Loretta, who slips out of her bedroom every evening to meet her so-called gentile boyfriend. Her strict Mormon parents catch her returning one night, and promptly marry her off to Dean Harder, a devout yet materialistic fundamentalist who already has a wife and a brood of kids. The Harders relocate to his native Idaho, where Dean’s teenage nephew Jason falls hard for Loretta. A Zeppelin and Tolkien fan, Jason worships Evel Knievel and longs to leave his close-minded community. He and Loretta make a break for it. They drive all night, stay in hotels, and relish their dizzying burst of teenage freedom as they seek to recover Dean’s cache of “Mormon gold.” But someone Loretta left behind is on their trail…”“The family house is in the small town of Fingerbone on a glacial lake in the Far West, the same lake where their grandfather died in a spectacular train wreck and their mother drove off a cliff to her death. It is a town ‘chastened by an outsized landscape and extravagant weather, and chastened again by an awareness that the whole of human history had occurred elsewhere.’”To provide the best experiences, we and our partners use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us and our partners to process personal data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site and show (non-) personalized ads. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.

Click below to consent to the above or make granular choices. Your choices will be applied to this site only. You can change your settings at any time, including withdrawing your consent, by using the toggles on the Cookie Policy, or by clicking on the manage consent button at the bottom of the screen.“Deep in the Idaho wilderness the last vestiges of Old Idaho linger. In 1982, an eager young couple seeking adventure and challenge, Jim and Holley Akenson, moved to a log cabin in the back country to manage Taylor Ranch, the University of Idaho’s wilderness research station. In 7003 Days, Jim describes their encounters with wildlife and nature: tracking wolves and cougars, using mules for transportation and ranch work, and introducing university students to life in the rugged Salmon River Mountains of Central Idaho.”

“Fallen angels in the bawdy houses. Migrants barred from Main Street. Homesteaders driven from homesteads when August rained black storms of dust. The Other Idahoans recovers their hard-luck stories. Volume 7 of Boise State University’s prizewinning research series, the book closes with a driving tour of storied places from history’s underside.” “Winter in Idaho. The sky is dark. It is cold enough to crack bones. Living in harsh poverty, Jack Dahl is holding his breath. He and his younger brother have nothing―except each other. With his father incarcerated and his mother addicted to opiods, Jack faces a stark choice: lose his brother to foster care or find the drug money that sent his father to prison. He chooses the money. Ava Bardem lives in isolation, a life of silence. For seventeen years Ava’s father, an abusive and merciless man, has controlled her fate. He has taught her to love no one. Now Victor Bardem is stalking the same money as Jack. When he picks up on Jack’s trail, Ava must make her own wrenching choice: remain silent or speak, and help the brothers survive.” “Ann and Wade have carved out a life for themselves from a rugged landscape in northern Idaho, where they are bound together by more than love. With her husband’s memory fading, Ann attempts to piece together the truth of what happened to Wade’s first wife, Jenny, and to their daughters. In a story written in exquisite prose and told from multiple perspectives—including Ann, Wade, and Jenny, now in prison—we gradually learn of the mysterious and shocking act that fractured Wade and Jenny’s lives, of the love and compassion that brought Ann and Wade together, and of the memories that reverberate through the lives of every character in Idaho.”“Set in Arco, Idaho, in 1970, Val Brelinski’s powerfully affecting first novel tells the story of three sisters: young Frances, gregarious and strong-willed Jory, and moral-minded Grace. Their father, Oren, is a respected member of the community and science professor at the local college. Yet their mother’s depression and Grace’s religious fervor threaten the seemingly perfect family, whose world is upended when Grace returns from a missionary trip to Mexico and discovers she’s pregnant with—she believes—the child of God.”

One of the best places to go hunting for them in Idaho is at the Emerald Creek Garnet Area in the Panhandle National Forest. Here, you can pay a small fee to dig for your very own garnets – what could be more fun than that?

Idaho is best known for its potato production and is famously known as “The Gem State” for its rich source of gems. However, that is not all. Idaho is also home to a wide variety of landscapes and wildlife. Outdoor enthusiasts can enjoy the state’s mountains, lakes, and rivers, while its cities offer a more urban experience.This can be a little confusing for visitors, especially if you are traveling between the two areas. Just remember to check what time zone you will be in before making any plans!The capital city of Idaho, Boise is located in the southwestern part of the state. Home to over 200,000 people, Boise is best known for its beautiful natural surroundings since it is nestled in the foothills of the impressive Rocky Mountains.

Idaho is one of the few states in the US that is split between two time zones. Most of the state, including Boise, falls into the Mountain Time Zone. However, the northern part of Idaho is in the Pacific Time Zone.Some of Idaho’s most popular tourist attractions include Yellowstone National Park, Shoshone Falls, the Idaho Potato Museum, and the World Center for Birds of Prey. From cultural heritage to historical sites and awe-inspiring nature, Idaho is a great destination regardless if you’re looking for adventure or simply want to relax and enjoy the scenery.

This underrated state is home to a wide variety of attractions, including some of the most famous things in the country. From delicious food to awe-inspiring landscapes, Idaho has plenty to be discovered.

The sheer size and impressive power of the falls are enough to take anyone’s breath away. The area is also popular for the many recreational opportunities it offers. This unique landscape is definitely worth a visit, and you can even go exploring in some of the lava tubes if you’re feeling adventurous. Just make sure to bring a flashlight, as it can get pretty dark in there! There are plenty of ways to enjoy Idaho potatoes, but perhaps the most iconic is the baked potato. These are often served up huge and smothered in all sorts of delicious toppings.If you’re keen to try your hand at catching one of these slippery creatures, then there are plenty of guided tours and charter companies that can help you out. Some of them will even clean and cook your fish for you, so all you need to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy the fruits of your labor!

These are just a few of the things that Idaho is known for – there are plenty more to discover! From potatoes and huckleberries to star garnets and lava tubes, this state has plenty to offer visitors. Whether you’re looking for some delicious food, a challenging fishing trip, or a chance to find some hidden gems, you’ll be sure to find the adventure in Idaho.If there’s one thing that is most unique about Idaho, it has to be the breathtaking natural landspace that features mountains, rivers, forest and lakes. The diverse and scenic terrains are what makes the state an outdoor lover’s paradise with endless opportunities for adventure sports. That said, Idaho is also known for its star garnet and potatoes, reflecting the significance of its mining and agriculture industries.

You can hike along the rim of the canyon for stunning views of the falls, or take a boat tour to get up close and personal with the cascading water. There are picnic areas, fishing spots, and hiking trails as well, making it a famous destination for outdoor enthusiasts.

Idaho is home to a number of what are known as ‘ghost towns.’ These are towns that were once thriving communities but have since been abandoned, usually due to factors such as economic decline or natural disasters.

In a contrasting story, you can visit the nearby Atomic City – a small town with a big history. This is where the US government conducted much of its nuclear research during the Cold War and is sort of like a ghost town today.Throughout the canyon, you can enjoy spectacular views of towering cliffs, rushing rapids, and deep blue waters of the Snake River. This is a popular spot for hiking, camping, and rafting, and there are plenty of tour companies offering guided trips into the area.

Located in Eastern Idaho, Idaho Falls is the largest city outside of the Boise metropolitan area. It is home to over 60,000 people and often seen as the commercial and cultural hub for this region of the state.In addition, Shoshone Falls is also known to be an important cultural site for some Native American tribes, who have lived in the area for thousands of years. This natural landmark have played a significant role in their spiritual and cultural traditions, and is considered sacred. Famous for being the first city in the world to be lit by nuclear power, Arco is an interesting place to visit for anyone interested in energy or science history. Nearby Boise you will find the city of Nampa. It is the third most populous city in he state, home to over 100,000 people. Nampa is a great place to visit if you’re like to explore a vibrant arts and culture scene.

There are a few museums in town relating to this topic, including the Museum of Idaho’s Atomic Energy Exhibit, which tells the story of how Arco came to be powered by nuclear energy.Located in the heart of Treasure Valley, the city is also surrounded by several parks and recreation areas, including Lake Lowell and Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge. You can take advantage of the vast open space, farmland and scenic vistas on your trip.

For a taste of the local food scene, be sure to visit one of Nampa’s many farmers’ markets. Here, you can find fresh produce, local honey, artisanal cheese, and much more.These tubes can be found in a few different places around the state, but the most popular spot is Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve. It’s a protected area that covers more than 1,100 square miles of land in central Idaho.

The stunning natural beauty of Idaho’s rivers and lakes makes trout fishing a truly special experience. From the crystal clear waters of the Bear Lake to the majestic beauty of Priest Lake, Idaho’s waterways provide a breathtaking backdrop for anglers to enjoy while they cast their lines.

You can explore the abandoned buildings, many of which have been left exactly as they were when the town was deserted, and even go panning for gold in the nearby river.If you’ve never heard of huckleberries before, then get ready to have your taste buds blown away. These little berries are just plain delicious! They have a unique flavor that is often described as a cross between a blueberry and a raspberry, with a slightly tangy and floral taste.

From hiking and biking to skiing and snowboarding, there is no shortage of ways to enjoy the great outdoors in Boise across various seasons. Best of all, you don’t even need to go all the way out to enjoy the nature.

This protected status means that Idaho’s natural beauty remains largely unspoiled. Visitors can enjoy hiking, camping, fishing, and other outdoor activities in some of the most scenic surroundings in the country.You can see a range of shapes and sizes such as cinder cones and spatter cones. Aside from their distinctive features and geological significance, the Lava Tubes in Idaho is also a window into the state’s volcanic history.

Star Garnets in Idaho are special because of their rarity, unique appearance, and metaphysical properties. They are a treasured natural stone that is only found in a small region of the state and are highly sought after by gemstone enthusiasts and spiritual practitioners alike.

No list of famous Idaho food would be complete without mentioning potatoes. This humble vegetable has been a key part of the state’s economy and identity for centuries, and today around one-third of all potatoes grown in the US come from Idaho.The Idaho Potato Museum in Blackfoot is another must-visit for potato fans. Here, you can learn all about the state’s potato-growing history, see some unusual potato-themed items, and even try your hand at ‘potato stamping.

Apart from being an adventure and outdoor destination, the area has actually been inhabited by Native Americans for thousands of years. It is therefore home to several important archaeological sites that offer insight into the lives and culture of these early inhabitants.Rockhounding is a popular pastime in Idaho, and if you’re lucky you might just find a few precious stones to take home with you. If you want to learn more about what to look for, then be sure to stop by one of the many rock shops in town. The experts there will be more than happy to help you out! There is a diverse array of trout species, including rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, bull trout, and steelheads. Each of these species has its own unique characteristics and can be found in different parts of the state. One of the most well-preserved ghost towns in Idaho is Bannack. This former gold mining town was once the capital of Montana Territory, and today it’s a popular spot for history buffs and anyone interested in what life was like in the Old West.Idaho is also known for its protected wilderness areas. In total, around 14% of the state is made up of national forests, and there are also several national parks and monuments.

The bustling downtown district is littered with unique shops, restaurants, attractions, and galleries. From the Warhawk Air Museum to the Train Depot Museum, there are plenty of things to see and do in Nampa.However, this vibrant and friendly city also features rich cultural heritage and has a wide range of attractions to keep visitors entertained, including museums, art galleries, and parks. If you’re keen to try and find some huckleberries for yourself, then the best time to go hunting is during late summer. Head on out into the woods and keep your eyes peeled – the berries can be a little tricky to spot! That said, there is also no shortage of historic landmarks and cultural attractions across the city. The Museum of Idaho, Colonial Theatre and East Idaho Aquarium are just some of the popular ones.Idaho is a state in the northwestern region of the United States. It borders the Canadian province of British Columbia to the north and Washington and Oregon to the south. The state’s capital and largest city is Boise. Idaho is known for many things, such as beautiful nature wonders and precious gemstones that make it a unique destination. One of the best places to experience Idaho’s wilderness is Sawtooth National Forest. This area covers more than 2 million acres and includes several mountain ranges, rivers, and forests. There are also over 800 miles of hiking trails, making it a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts. Found only in a handful of places around the world, the star garnet is Idaho’s state gem since 1967. These beautiful stones can be various shades of red, brown or purple, and each one contains a unique star-shaped pattern.In the mid-19th century, Union and Confederate supporters fleeing the Civil War went west to Idaho, and Mormons flocked to the region to avoid persecution. Today more Mormons live in Idaho than in almost any other state. President Abraham Lincoln signed the bill creating the Idaho Territory in 1863, which included much of the land that would become Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. In 1868, modern Idaho was carved from the territory, and in 1890 it became the 43rd state. Snowy mountains, deep valleys, lakes and rivers cover the Gem State, which is twice the size of the six New England states combined. A Rocky Mountain state, Idaho is bordered by Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Montana, Wyoming and a small portion of Canada’s British Columbia.Though Spaniards began exploring the Northwest in 1592, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were the first European-Americans to enter Idaho in 1805. During the Gold Rush of the mid-1800s, miners flocked to California and Idaho, where they found gold, copper and lead. To vote on books not in the list or books you couldn’t find in the list, you can click on the tab add books to this list and then choose from your books, or simply search. Stacker compiled a list of books set in Idaho from Goodreads. Whether you’re looking for a good read set in the state you call home, or you’re looking to expand your curiosity with a writer you’re already familiar with, we’ve got you covered.Every state has its hallmark writers. Mississippi has William Faulkner and his incomparable (fictional) Yoknapatawpha County and Missouri can lay claim to Mark Twain. The state of Maine is gifted with Pulitzer winner Richard Russo and horror icon Stephen King. Rural Pennsylvania is the playground of the much-heralded (and occasionally maligned) John Updike, and when many bibliophiles think of New Jersey, they also think of Richard Ford’s series of novels featuring recurring Everyman character Frank Bascombe. Illinois can lay claim to William Maxwell, Sandra Cisneros, and Adam Langer, among numerous others. And what reader can think of Washington State without contending with the sparkle-vampire yarns of Stephanie Meyer?