NPR

The Vast And The Violent Rural Northwest, In 'Come West And See'

Maxim Loskutoff's collection of short stories picks at the tensions between city and country among everyday Westerners — who find themselves living among heavily-armed separatist militias.
<em></em>cover art to <em>Come West and See</em> by Maxim Loskutoff

The title of Maxim Loskutoff's debut book is an invitation. Or is it a command?

In the short story collection Come West and See, he writes about a region that is wild and aggressive, standing in stark opposition to the society that exists in, say, Washington, D.C., or New York City.

Loskutoff grew up in the American West, in Missoula, Mont., but back then, that fierce, rugged individualism didn't quite appeal to him.

My definition of the West was a place that I wanted to leave," he says. "I always dreamt of the cities on the coasts, the cities

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