ABOUT THE BOOK: cofounder of the Sundance Film Institute. land, or history. How do these relation- With William Kittredge, she coedited The ships interweave in Homestead? Homestead is a touching and compelling Last Best Place: A Anthology and ¥ Have you ever felt compelled to memoir chronicling a womanÕs life as it regularly contributes to magazines such completely relocate, to change your starts anew in the open land of the West. as Outside, Travel and Leisure, and Story. environment? If so, what would it take Annick Smith moved with her husband Her short story, ÒItÕs Come to This,Ó was to follow through on the compulsion? and their four boys to the fertile valley What would prevent you from doing one of three selections that won Story of the Big Blackfoot River in 1959. Shortly it? magazineÕs National Magazine Award for after they established their home on the Fiction in 1991. It was included in Best ¥ Which essays were your favorites? 163 acres of ranch land, AnnickÕ Why? American Short Stories 1992 and since then husband, David, died; although not un- has been anthologized many times. expected, his death was still devastating. Her love for the land that serves as a FOR FURTHER READING: haven for her and her family is evident in QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION: An American Childhood by Annie Dillard this testament of endurance and courage. ¥ Is there a special place in your lifeÑ (HarperCollins, 1988) She writes of her friendship with another part of the country or world, A River Runs Through It and Other Stories Norman Maclean, whom she worked or perhaps another corner of the by Norman Maclean (University of with on the production of A River Runs environment you live in every day? Chicago Press, 1979) Through It, and she eloquently makes the What does it mean to you and why? case for preserving the fragile wild envi- ¥ How does SmithÕs cultural background Young Men & Fire by Norman Maclean ronments that are our sacred places. shape her experiences? How has your (University of Chicago Press, 1993) background shaped the experiences in The Solace of Open Spaces by Gretel ABOUT THE AUTHOR: your life? Ehrlich (Viking, 1986) Annick Smith was born in Paris and ¥ Did her husbandÕs illness have an The Ninemile Wolves by Rick Bass raised in Chicago. She married David effect on SmithÕs independence? Do you think her life and experiences with (Ballantine, 1993) Smith, and together they decided to try the land would have unfolded in the to fulfill their dream of owning a ranch in same way if he had not died at such a Winter: Notes from Montana by Rick Bass the open spaces of Montana. Homestead is young age? (Houghton Mifflin, 1992) a personal account of the experiences ¥ How does Smith deal with the expect- Hole in the Sky: A Memoir by William they endured together and those she ed yet tragic loss of her husband? How Kittredge (Vintage, 1993) managed alone, after DaveÕs death, with does she see her relationship to the her four boys. land as a continuance to the values she Montana Spaces: Essays in Celebration of shared with her husband? Montana edited by William Kittredge In addition to coproducing A River Runs (Lyons & Buford, 1996) Through It, Annick Smith was the ¥ Explore the idea of building relation- shipsÑwith friends and family, the executive producer of Heartland and a Who Owns the West? by William Kittredge (Mercury House, 1996) A MILKWEED READING GUIDE Montana 1948 by Larry Watson (Milkweed Editions, 1993) HOMESTEAD Justice by Larry Watson HOMESTEAD by Annick Smith (Milkweed Editions, 1995) by Annick Smith

OTHER WORKS BY ANNICK SMITH: Trade Paper, $13.95 ISBN: 1-57131-213-7 Big Bluestem. (Council Oak Books and Hardcover, $19.95 The Nature Conservancy, 1996) ISBN: 1-57131-206-4 The Last Best Place: A Montana Anthology. Coeditor with William Kittredge (Montana Historical Society Press, 1988) MILKWEED EDITIONS 430 First Avenue North, Suite 400 Minneapolis, MN 55401-1743 612-332-3192/ 800-520-6455 http://www.milkweed.org ÒHere is a woman to admire and love. ÔYou can fall in love with space and sky,Õ Annick Smith writes. ÔA girl from Chicago can go West and find mountains.Õ . . . A passionate story, beautifully told.Ó ÑAnnie Dillard

ÒPowerful. . . . Perfect for those who love rugged country and understand that wild places own us more than we own them.Ó ÑU.S. News and World Report

ÒAnnick Smith may have been born in Paris, but she is a true hero of the American West. . . . She is the real thing. She shoots from the heart. She gives us a lot to think aboutÑtalk about. Read her with a friend.Ó ÑSally Smith, A WomanÕs Place Bookstore, Salt Lake City, Utah