Oil Notes by Rick Bass Illustrated by Elizabeth Hughes Introduction by John Graves

"Rick Bass . . . has accomplished the remarkable feat of doing for oil exploration what Izaak Walton did for fishing." —Ronald Wright, Times Literary Supplement

Bringing a lyric imagination to the oil geologist's craft, Rick Bass measures the lives and relationships of human beings against the immutable history of the earth. First published in 1989, Oil Notes is written in the form of a journal in which he reflects on his three obsessions—oil, food, and his girlfriend Elizabeth.

"Oil Notes pierces the human condition and drills deeply into the heart of man's search for his place on the planet. It is a wildcat find, as rich and textured as the oil Bass sought in this chronicle of love and exploration in Mississippi. His voice hums with the power and rhythm of derricks, pumping language for the last drop of natural beauty . . . Bass marries essay to short story in this journal."—Jackson Clarion-Ledger

"An exuberant book, written with care and beauty . . . perhaps a classic in a brand-new form."—Jim Harrison

"He knows how to write; and like his oil witchery, this gift is extravagant and natural."—Time

"Rick Bass is the best young writer to come along in many years. Oil Notes is full of fascinating information and vigorous life."—Annie Dillard

A petroleum geologist and environmental activist, RICK BASS is author of several other works of nonfiction about the outdoors and the prize-winning story collections The Watch, In the Loyal Mountains, and Platte River. He lives on a remote ranch in northern Montana.

Dean of Texas letters, JOHN GRAVES has been called a twentieth-century Thoreau. He is author of the classic Goodbye to a River.

---

Oil Notes
ISBN 0-87074-383-X paper $10.95

6x9. 192 pp. 21 illus.
Literary Nonfiction. Petroleum Geology. Environmental Studies.

Publication Date: October 1995.

---

Terms of order and other ways to order