The Last River Rat: Kenny Salwey's Life in the Wild

by J. Scott Bestul, Kenny Salwey, Mary Kay Salwey (Illustrator)

Kenny Salwey is a modern-day American hermit who has lived most of his life in the Mississippi river bottoms, coming to know the river ecosystem with an intimacy unavailable to most. Now, Kenny shares his love of, and knowledge about, the mighty river. The Last River Rat is a seasonal look at Kenny’s unique life. Each chapter covers a month of Kenny’s year and starts by detailing his activities—such as deer hunting, ginseng digging, or mushroom picking—and closes with one of Kenny’s own "Rat Tales": his personal thoughts on various aspects of his way of life, such as the importance of dogs or memories of other river rats with whom he has crossed paths. Through Kenny—a true naturalist who provides sage advice about living off the land and protecting the river’s ecology—and The Last River Rat , you’ll gain a greater appreciation for the natural world.

Genres: Nonfiction, Outdoors

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Rebecca Burke · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have no experience of growing up on and around rivers, you may not grok this small masterpiece of nature writing. And that's a shame (for you in re: your impoverished life). Those of us who know, or used to know, a lot about rivers have probably run into folks like Kenny Salwey, the hero in this book. He and his kind believe the term "River Rat" is an honorific. I do too, even more so after devouring this wonderful book.

The Last River Rat is a pure joy to read, funny as hell in places, but also a book that requires a few tissues close at hand (are there any nature stories worth their salt that don't eventually tear your heart out?).

I grew up wandering the Loess Hills around the Missouri and fishing there and in the Sioux rivers and tributaries with my outdoorsman father. Exploring, mushrooming, swimming off sandbars, building a million-and-one forts and treehouses. This book brought back so many memories, good and bad (the two constants of any outdoor excursion, the bad mostly coming from freezing, broiling or insect bites). If you are lucky enough to be given an orientation to nature when you are young, you will not be able to resist this book. If you are unlucky enough to have been deprived of that experience, this book will help give you an idea of what you have missed. It is rich with fine prose, excellent stories, and a remarkable man's philosophy about what it is going to take for us to save our wild places.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. A story of a man who lives off the land around the swamps of the Mississippi River, near where we live right now. It’s written month by month according to the calendar here, highlighting different things in nature that correspond to that time of year. The person who wrote it is a friend of Kenny, and they go on various adventures together, hunting for sorel mushrooms, getting stuck in Mississippi black mud, trout fishing, trapping, and ginseng digging. I learned a lot about the nature of this area and loved hearing of the adventures and the different life of someone who grew up so close to nature. They discuss how to skin animals, and how to cut the meat. They discuss how best to cook venison, and they talk about the various ducks and birds of the area. I one of things that I appreciated from this book was understanding the origination and the hard work that went into some of the things that we use daily. Some hints: best walking sticks are made of Birchwood, never ask a trout fish or person where their favorite spot to fish is, and the best labs are those with black roofs on their mouths.

[Travis Niemeyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read Bestul and Salwey’s tales over the course of a week while overlooking the Mississippi River in Bellevue, Iowa. While reading the book on the balcony of a hotel isn’t the same as reading it in the swamp that makes up the setting of the book, the descriptive imagery of the books makes it easy to imagine yourself there as you read.

I enjoyed the seasonal structure of the book and the stories that tell of Salwey’s way of life.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book if you're interested in the life of someone who lives off of nature. Kenny's life is very reminiscent of several of my father's friends and of my former father-in-law. It is a hard life but being able to live your life according to your own schedule and the schedule of nature rather than answering to an alarm clock can be quite alluring.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting enough book for anyone who is curious about living, and making a living, in natural (esp river) surroundings.

[Carrielynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was for our book club. Really didn't pique my interest, tho was interesting. I may finish it later but I had a better book that was calling to me.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A one-year "diary" of living the life of a "river rat" in the backwaters of the Mississippi River.

Broken down first by month, and then each month having three parts, 1)River Rat Almanac, 2) Scott Bestul's report on what he learns from Kenny during that month, 3) Kenny's Tale. Each is interesting in its own way, but Scott's narration is direct and honest and brings the reader right to the Whitman Swamp with him.

An engaging read, interesting, and dare I say, unique in so many ways. Better, I think than the legendary A Sand County Almanac, and will have a comfortable spot on the bookshelf near my favorite outdoor memoirist, Sigurd F. Olson.

Highly recommended.

(Bonus note...my copy is autographed by both Scott Bestul and Kenny salwey)