The Drop Edge of Yonder

By Rudolph Wurlitzer

Book Overview

* Time Out New York's #1 Best Book of 2008
* ForeWord Magazine Gold Medal for Literary Fiction

"There's a bawdy, lunatic thrill to the tale that seems somehow radical. It's the kind of book someone will stick in a back pocket before heading out on the trail into the unknown."
--LA Weekly

Rudolph Wurlitzer's first novel in nearly 25 years is an epic adventure that explores the truth and temptations of the American myth.

Beginning in the savage wilds of Colorado in the waning days of the fur trade, the story follows Zebulon Shook, a mountain man who has a curse placed on him by a mysterious Native American woman whose lover he murdered, to "drift like a blind man between the worlds, not knowing if you're dead or alive, of if the unseen world exists, or if you're dreaming." Zebulon sets out on the trail from Colorado, venturing to the remote reaches of the Northwest, a journey that traverses the Gulf of Mexico to Panama, and up the coast of California to San Francisco and the gold fields, bringing him face-to-face with mystics and outlaws, politically-minded prison wardens and Russian Counts, each hungry to stake their claim on the American dream.

A novel of breathtaking scope and beauty, The Drop Edge of Yonder reveals one of America's most transcendant writers at the top of his form.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1937512614
• ISBN13: 9781937512613
• Release Date: March 2017
• Publisher: Two Dollar Radio
• Length: 252 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.4" x 7.4"
• Age Range: 17 years and up

Customer Reviews

Awesome! Loved it!

Really a great read. Couldn't put it down. Never wanted it to end. Rudolph Wurlitzer writes with the alacrity of a screenwriter, the lyricism of a poet and of course the storytelling of a great novelist which he surely is.

Simply incredible

I can't say too much here as I am in the process of reviewing this book for Pop Matters but as a major league Wurlitzer fan I wanted to hop on here to say that "Drop Edge" is well worth the wait. I hate to use the shopworn phrase "metaphysical western" but, really, it applies and the theosophic bent of the story grows on the reader casually -- if anything, Wurlitzer is redundant with his symbolism (Queen of Hearts, anyone?)to ensure that we're getting his point. To the point that it almost becomes a heavy-handed joke. But as Wurlitzer, in the voice of Mexican seer Plaxico, says, "Let it go." By the way, if the plot seems rather similar to Jim Jarmusch's movie "Dead Man" ... well, that's because "Drop Edge" was a circulated screenplay for many years under the title "Zebulon" and Jarmusch (along with Hal Ashby and Alex Cox at other junctions) once had it under option. Yeah. He ripped off Wurlitzer. But we got a superior novel out of the deal.

The Drop Edge of Yonder

"The Drop Edge of Yonder" by Rudy Wurlitzer is a brilliantly written ride through an old west that's infinitely more interesting than the reality probably was.Its funny, provocative and completely crazy. Wurlitzer puts words together as well if not better than anyone out there.

ragged glory

I love, love, love Two Lane Blacktop, so when I saw R.W. had put out a new novel I pounced on it and found a book that at first glance seems redolent of Blood Meridian and other C. McCarthy books, but turned quickly into it's own hairy creation with a far more spiritual and humanistic aim and approach despite all the resonant violence and inhumanity it depicts. I wholly recommend it.

hurrah for mountain doin's!

I'm loving the book. I just recently became aware of this band called Earth, which is like country and western doom metal moving at the pace of molasses. It's really beautiful and sweet. I have REALLY been enjoying doing these two things at the same time. It kind of feels like going to the movies. The Drop Edge of Yonder is like reading the screenplay of The Wild Bunch remade with David Lynch directing instead of Sam Peckinpah. Highly recommended.