Haverford College

Join the Libraries and the English Department for a reading by Ben Pladek '07 from his new book, Dry Land!

This will be a hybrid event; join the webinar here.

1917, Wisconsin. A decade after lumbering has devastated the forests of the upper Midwest, an idealistic young forester named Rand Brandt discovers he has a magic power: his touch can grow any plant in minutes. Overjoyed, he dreams of devoting his life to conservation. When Rand confides in his new lover Gabriel, he begs Rand to regrow his family’s drought-scourged farm. Rand can’t refuse. When the US Forest Service drafts Rand to grow timber for the war, he can’t refuse either—though Gabriel’s been drafted too, and the army is a dangerous place for men in love.

Then a week before boot camp, Rand realizes everything he grows dies within days. Horrified, he scrambles to learn how to control his power, throwing himself into self-destructive trials, raising trees until he blacks out. Determined to keep his promises, he conceals his efforts from Gabriel and the Forest Service, even as he’s deployed to France to begin growing pine.

But as the war intensifies, Rand’s efforts grow too desperate to hide. Worse yet, Europe’s forests, unnatural but beautiful, start to shake his faith in the one thing he thought he understood: wilderness itself. As Rand’s lies shatter around him, he must confront the terrifying possibility that he might never master his power—a prospect that upends everything he believes about nature, love, and himself.  

Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://haverford.zoom.us/j/92917537055?pwd=RjRXZERvdzA5K1hzZ2NpUStIbDh5UT09
Passcode: 888321
Or One tap mobile :
    +13052241968,,92917537055#,,,,*888321# US
    +13092053325,,92917537055#,,,,*888321# US
Or Telephone:
    Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):
    +1 305 224 1968 US
    +1 309 205 3325 US
    +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
    +1 646 931 3860 US
    +1 929 205 6099 US (New York)
    +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
    +1 689 278 1000 US
    +1 719 359 4580 US
    +1 253 205 0468 US
    +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
    +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
    +1 360 209 5623 US
    +1 386 347 5053 US
    +1 507 473 4847 US
    +1 564 217 2000 US
    +1 669 444 9171 US
    +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
Webinar ID: 929 1753 7055
Passcode: 888321
    International numbers available: https://haverford.zoom.us/u/aEDJX90Z