BY KAREN BOSSICK
John Rember, the storyteller of the Sawtooth Valley, is back this week with a fireside chat—or, rather, reading—at The Community Library in Ketchum.
Rember will read from his latest books “Journal of the Plague Years: End Notes,” “Ghost Dance” and “Aftermath” at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 25, at The Community Library.
The essays in “Journal of the Plague Years” tell of life in the Sawtooth Valley during and after the Covid-19 pandemic with a little dark humor in the face of death, honesty and clarity. They address the fear and uncertainty that accompanied the pandemic, which killed more than 1.2 million Americans and 7 million-plus people worldwide.
And they remind us of some of the perks of the pandemic that for Rember and his wife Julie meant more time to enjoy each another’s company while hiking, backcountry skiing, cooking gourmet dinners for two and reading all the unread books they’d never had time to read before.
“Ghost Dance” reflects on the wars, undeniable climate change, toxic social media and tribalism that seemed exacerbated in the wake of the pandemic. And “Aftermath” explores how cherished ways of living are being lost to artificial intelligence, a relentlessly warming climate and inhumane wars.
“In these thoughtful, prescient pieces there are no zombies or post-nuclear mutants or most of the other things we talk a lot about when we imagine the End of the World,” said Christopher Farnsworth, bestselling author of “Blood Oath.” “Instead, John writes about what it really means. Sometimes it’s worth asking what’s ending, and what’s beginning. Look at these books as a survival kit for your sanity for the next time the Apocalypse rolls around.”
Rember was born in the Sun Valley Lodge and grew up in Stanley and Hailey before heading to the Treasure Valley where he was a professor of writing at The College of Idaho and to Oregon where he taught writing in the Pacific University MFA program at Forest Grove, Ore.
He is the author of nine books, including the award-winning memoir “Traplines: Coming Home to Sawtooth Valley.”
To see Rember in person, RSVP at https://thecommunitylibrary.libcal.com/event/16164092.
The program can also be watched online at https://vimeo.com/event/5778516 and it will be recorded to watch later.