Home Range

Robert howled again, and this time a single voice replied. Long, haunting sounds, beautifully modulated. They chilled Jo. Seconds later came a more distant wailing chorus. ?We've got company,? Robert said. ?Two different groups.' All three raised their binoculars. ?There? said Jo, pointing. When Dr. Jo Settle, a Michigan Tech University biology professor, becomes involved with PhD student Robert Peterson, she is unaware of his scheme to steal and relocate two packs of wolves from Wisconsin to a wilderness area in West Virginia. But events quickly spin out of control, thrusting Jo from the placid groves of academe into a terrifying battle of wits and weaponry in the Appalachian coal country. Jo's brother Cal, a Civil War park docent recovering from failure in both his marriage and the dot-com bubble, tries to help his sister navigate the treacherous dilemma with Robert. Jo's mentor, Theo Rosenbloom, head of Tech's biology department, and Robert's lifelong friend Hassan, a second-generation Arab American, also become caught up in Robert's intrigue. Home Rangecombines a page-turning crime novel with a sober environmental sensitivity. Driving the plot are issues from today's news: What does it mean to be an immigrant in America? In fact, who is a native and who is an American? Do we have a duty to protect native species and our environment? And what do we lose for ourselves and our descendants if we don't?Smith, Jeffrey is the author of 'Home Range', published 2006 under ISBN 9780595398584 and ISBN 0595398588.