SOURCE: A review of Wild to the Heart, in Los Angeles Times Book Review, March 18, 1990, p. 10.

In the following review, Solomon presents a positive appraisal of Wild to the Heart.

Unlike his short stories, which flounder through their oppressively Southern settings, Rick Bass’ essays in Wild to the Heart are crisp, neatly structured and highly entertaining. His first-person accounts of camping, fishing and canoeing capture the lure of the wilderness and the camaraderie of the people who love it. Bass’ spare prose has a studied artlessness reminiscent of Japanese brush painting. The description of the summer afternoon in “Fish Fry,” when the most important decision the author faces is whether to take off his tennis shoes and socks, captivates the reader with its casual intimacy—while concealing the effort needed to achieve that easy informality.

Bass insists that he prefers the rugged Utah mountains he explored as a...