368 ratings | 14 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.

Go to River’s 2025 Year in Books

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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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Combine Editions
River Selby’s books

Average rating: 3.69 · 538 ratings · 139 reviews · 1 distinct work • Similar authors

Hotshot: A Life on Fire

3.69 avg rating — 538 ratings — published 2025 — 5 editions

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* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

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River is Currently Reading

River Selby is currently reading

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)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Feb 08, 2026 10:43AM

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River’s Recent Updates

River Selby is now friends with Barry
Feb 10, 2026 06:24AM · like
River Selby is currently reading 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
Feb 08, 2026 10:43AM · 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 Red Ocher (Miller Williams Poetry Prize) by Jessica Poli (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
Feb 06, 2026 05:38PM · like
River Selby liked Ilana's review of Hotshot: A Life on Fire: "A riveting, fascinating, and beautifully written book about firefighting, ecology, the earth, gender, and so much more. "
Feb 06, 2026 11:25AM · 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">
River Selby wants to read 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
Jan 30, 2026 03:07PM · 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 wants to read The Way Around: A Field Guide to Going Nowhere by Nicholas Triolo	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
Jan 30, 2026 03:07PM · like
River Selby liked Anna Patrick's review of When It All Burns: Fighting Fire in a Transformed World: "Now that I find myself three books and five documentaries deep on my wildland firefighting rabbit hole, I’m so glad that I’m ending my spree (I think, at least for now!) with this one - Jordan Thomas has truly given us a 360 degree view of mega fires" Read more of this review »
Jan 27, 2026 04:19PM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of When It All Burns by Jordan Thomas. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — When It All Burns by Jordan Thomas <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
River Selby and 2 other people liked Chris Watkins's review of Hotshot: A Life on Fire: "Do not yourself live in a world where you have not read Hotshot! If you are interested in wildfire, in landscape, in nature writing, in the climate crises, in the American West, in narratives of overcoming misogyny, if you have a pulse, if you are li" Read more of this review »
Jan 27, 2026 04:02PM · 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">
River Selby is now following laurel [the suspected bibliophile] and Jenny Lawson
Jan 27, 2026 03:58PM