Afternoon Light

In 1971, graduate student Ralph Beer has two main interests—experiencing the local drug scene and avoiding the horrors of the Vietnam War. Only a university deferment stands between him and the draft, but he has lost interest in his studies, instead becoming increasingly attracted to a beautiful, brilliant fellow student.

Twenty-three years old and flat broke, Ralph and Sheila drop out, leave their families behind, and drive north to central British Columbia, where they hope to build a log cabin and find permanent asylum.

Alone in the woods, they take up a mining claim, prepare the logs needed for their cabin, and begin to build. Shaped by the isolation of the wilderness around them, they grow tougher and more resilient, until, when their plans are thrown into turmoil, they have the courage and strength to face the world they had been avoiding in college.

A moving, often-funny, coming-of-age story, Afternoon Light recreates the chaos and uncertainty many young Americans felt during a defining moment in their country’s history, as a brutal war and those who opposed it shaped the nation.

Ralph Beer has worked as a ranch hand, sawyer, equipment operator, teacher, and carpenter's helper. He served three years in the United States Army.

Beer is a former contributing editor of Harper's Magazine, who considers himself fortunate to have been part of the writers' community in Missoula, Montana. Afternoon Light is Beer's fourth book, following The Blind Corral, In These Hills, and The Jackson Creek Road.