In semi-autobiographical stories set largely in David Vann’s native Alaska, this is set on a wild island in southern Alaska, accessible only by boat or seaplane, all in wet forests and steep mountains. It is in this setting that Jim decides to take his thirteen-year-old son to live there in an isolated cabin for a year. After a succession of personal failures, he sees the opportunity to make a new start and reconnect with this boy he knows so little.