East of the Mountains — David Guterson

IN MID-OCTOBER, in the rich pear- and apple-growing region of Washington state's Columbia Basin, retired heart surgeon Ben Givens learns that he has terminal colon cancer. Determined to avoid his suffering, Ben sets out with his two hunting dogs through the sage deserts, canyons, and orchards of the American West on his last hunt. But the people he meets and the memories he evokes on his journey test his very identity. Full of humanity, passion, and moral honesty, East of the Mountains is a bold novel of immense beauty.