Montana's stunning landscape shapes all who live here and all who visit. In twenty powerful pieces of writing--essays, memoirs, short stories--the state's finest contemporary writers explore the plains, rivers, and mountains of Big Sky Country. They show us how natural beauty and hardship are two sides of the same coin, and how sometimes the only way to cure heartache is to visit the great outdoors. From a hardscrabble upbringing to the pain of losing the family land, from death on a river to the awe of landing a big fish, from backcountry encounters with grizzly bears to an out-of-stater's happiness at making Montana her home, A Million Acres offers a wonderfully diverse range of experiences and perspectives. Framing these words are twenty-eight breathtaking photographs that render these open spaces in gorgeous color. Come to Montana: in words, in pictures, in person. And see what makes the Last Best Place worth saving. Contributors are: Rick Bass Maile Meloy Carrie La Seur Joe Wilkins Jim Robbins Gwen Florio Jamie Harrison Sterling HolyWhiteMountain Janet Skeslien Charles Maxim Loskutoff Christine Carbo James Grady Alexis Bonogofsky Russell Rowland Caroline Patterson Keir Graff Eric Heidle LeDoux Hansen Antonia Malchik Allen Morris Jones