375 ratings | 16 reviews | avg rating:4.81

River’s Year In Books

River’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at River’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

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River Selby

Goodreads Author

Born

in Los Angeles, The United States

Website

https://www.riverselby.com

Genre

Nonfiction, Memoir, Science

Influences

jamesbaldwin, davidwojnarowicz, robinwallkimmerer, tonimorrison, lidia ...more

Member Since

July 2023

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River Selby worked as a wildland firefighter for seven years, stationed out of California, Oregon, Colorado, and Alaska. They are the author of HOTSHOT: A LIFE ON FIRE.

They are currently a Kingsbury and Legacy Fellow at Florida State University, where they are pursuing their PhD in Nonfiction with an emphasis in postcolonial histories, North American colonization, and postmodern literature and culture. River has spent nearly a decade researching the history of fire suppression in the United States, Indigenous fire and land-tending practices, climate change impacts, and ecological adaptations across North American landscapes. Their research is informed by their extensive field experience.

River is a first generation high-school and college gr ...more

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River Selby’s books

Average rating: 3.69 · 615 ratings · 149 reviews · 1 distinct work • Similar authors

Hotshot: A Life on Fire

3.69 avg rating — 615 ratings — published 2025 — 5 editions

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River is Currently Reading

River Selby is currently reading

The Year of Magical Thinking

by Joan Didion

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Mar 20, 2026 03:02AM

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River’s Recent Updates

River Selby finished reading Beings by Ilana Masad (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
17 hours, 55 min ago · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Beings by Ilana Masad. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Beings by Ilana Masad <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby rated a book it was amazing Nightbird: A Memoir by Shavaun Scott (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 16, 2026 09:03PM · like
River Selby is currently reading The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 20, 2026 03:02AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby is accepting questions on their profile page.
Mar 14, 2026 08:34AM · Be the first to ask River Selby a question
River Selby rated a book it was amazing Salt Lakes: An Unnatural History by Caroline Tracey	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I adored Salt Lakes. Tracey takes us on a journey through more than several salt lakes, sharing their natural histories and current issues with the reader, but she also shares herself, and these were the parts of the book I connected with the most (a ...more
Mar 14, 2026 08:28AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Salt Lakes by Caroline Tracey. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Salt Lakes by Caroline Tracey <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby rated a book it was amazing Waiting for Britney Spears by Jeff Weiss (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This memoir surprised me. In a way, it felt like Weiss was doing penance for his sins as a pap– interrogating himself and celebrity culture in a way that few writers are capable of doing, either because they're not great writers or because they lack ...more
Mar 13, 2026 06:10AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Waiting for Britney Spears by Jeff Weiss. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Waiting for Britney Spears by Jeff Weiss <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby rated a book it was amazing Uncanny Valley Girls: Essays on Horror, Survival, and Love – A Literary Hub Most Anticipated Memoir on Trans Identity and Gender by Zefyr Lisowski (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 13, 2026 06:09AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Uncanny Valley Girls by Zefyr Lisowski. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Uncanny Valley Girls by Zefyr Lisowski <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby rated a book it was amazing The Enduring Wild: A Journey Into California's Public Lands by Josh Jackson (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 12, 2026 03:40PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Enduring Wild by Josh Jackson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Enduring Wild by Josh Jackson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby rated a book it was amazing Beings by Ilana Masad (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 12, 2026 03:39PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Beings by Ilana Masad. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Beings by Ilana Masad <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby and 2 other people liked Kristina's review of Hotshot: A Life on Fire: "Hotshot is an honest memoir that takes you on a journey through the eyes of a young wildland firefighter, Ana, mingled with historical and scientific context. The story is one of transformation, how we shape and are shaped by our environment. The aut" Read more of this review »
Mar 09, 2026 05:35PM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Hotshot by River Selby. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Hotshot by River Selby <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">