A Geography of Saints is a fascinating and clear-eyed account of the author’s first year caretaking a horse ranch outside Saints, Oregon. In language as terse as Tom McGuane, as wondrous as Rachel Carson, Penny Allen tells of challenges both natural and human: the predations of clear-cut logging, how the cult of Rajneeshpuram took over the town of Antelope, the crucial and ceaseless importance of water on the desert, the odd security provided by a reclusive Vietnam vet “on patrol”; in the forest, and the highs and lows of a love affair conducted in Big Sky country.
“Allen is a writer of extraordinary talent. A gem of a book.” – Mary Dearborn
“Allen sculpts prose that is physical, melodically clear, and mesmerizingly dangerous.” – Katherine Dunn
“A wonderful portrait of life in the high desert of Oregon. A very inspiring book.”– Gus Van Sant