"Following the 2016 presidential election, writer Heather Lende, inspired to take a more active role in politics, runs for assembly member in Haines, Alaska-and wins. But tiny Haines-a place accessible from the nearest city, Juneau, only by boat or plane-isn't the sleepy town it appears to be. From a bitter debate about the expansion of the fishing boat harbor to the matter of how to stop bears from rifling through garbage to the recall campaign that...

"The spellbinding story of Chris McCandless, who gave away his savings, hitchhiked to Alaska, walked into the wilderness alone, and starved to death in 1992, fascinated not just New York Times bestselling author Jon Krakauer, but also the rest of the nation. Krakauer's book, Into the Wild, became an international bestseller, translated into thirty-one languages, and Sean Penn's inspirational film by the same name further skyrocketed Chris McCandless...

-- Heather Lende's new book, -- is available now.