Butcher's Crossing

Butcher's Crossing by John Williams is a Stark and contemplative novel that examines the spiritual cost of American Frontier and Manifest Destiny. Set in the 1870s, the story follows Will Andrews, a young Harvard dropout, moves westwards in search of authenticity and has a deep connection with nature. He joins a buffalo hunting campaign led by obsessive Miller, which is convinced that a hidden valley in Colorado keeps a huge herd untouched by a hunter. As the campaign turns into a cruel test of endurance and existence, Andrews faces disillusionment with the rigorous realities of the forest, the destructive impulses of man and romantic ideals. The novel removes the myths of the American West, which reveals a ghost meditation on the existence of ambition, nature and human desire.