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Martin Marten
Dave is fourteen years old, living with his family in a cabin on Oregon's Mount Hood (or as Dave prefers to call it, like the Native Americans once did, Wy'east). He is entering high school, adulthood on the horizon not far off in distance, and contemplating a future away from his mother, father, and his precocious younger sister.
And Dave is not the only one approaching adulthood and its freedoms on Wy'east that summer. Martin, a pine marten (a small animal of the deep woods, of the otter/mink family), is leaving his own mother and siblings and setting off on his own as well. As Martin and Dave's paths cross on forest trails and rocky mountaintops, they—and we—witness the full, unknowable breadth and vast sweep of life, and the awe-inspiring interconnectedness of the world and its many inhabitants, human and otherwise.
Martin Marten is a coming-of-age tale like no other, told in Brian Doyle's joyous, rollicking style.
And Dave is not the only one approaching adulthood and its freedoms on Wy'east that summer. Martin, a pine marten (a small animal of the deep woods, of the otter/mink family), is leaving his own mother and siblings and setting off on his own as well. As Martin and Dave's paths cross on forest trails and rocky mountaintops, they—and we—witness the full, unknowable breadth and vast sweep of life, and the awe-inspiring interconnectedness of the world and its many inhabitants, human and otherwise.
Martin Marten is a coming-of-age tale like no other, told in Brian Doyle's joyous, rollicking style.
309 pages, Hardcover
First published April 7, 2015
404 people are currently reading
3689 people want to read
About the author
Brian Doyle
62 books730 followersDoyle's essays and poems have appeared in The Atlantic Monthly, Harper's, The American Scholar, Orion, Commonweal, and The Georgia Review, among other magazines and journals, and in The Times of London, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Kansas City Star, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Ottawa Citizen, and Newsday, among other newspapers. He was a book reviewer for The Oregonian and a contributing essayist to both Eureka Street magazine and The Age newspaper in Melbourne, Australia.
Doyle's essays have also been reprinted in:
* the Best American Essays anthologies of 1998, 1999, 2003, and 2005;
* in Best Spiritual Writing 1999, 2001, 2002, and 2005; and
* in Best Essays Northwest (2003);
* and in a dozen other anthologies and writing textbooks.
As for awards and honors, he had three startling children, an incomprehensible and fascinating marriage, and he was named to the 1983 Newton (Massachusetts) Men's Basketball League all-star team, and that was a really tough league.
Doyle delivered many dozens of peculiar and muttered speeches and lectures and rants about writing and stuttering grace at a variety of venues, among them Australian Catholic University and Xavier College (both in Melbourne, Australia), Aquinas Academy (in Sydney, Australia); Washington State, Seattle Pacific, Oregon, Utah State, Concordia, and Marylhurst universities; Boston, Lewis & Clark, and Linfield colleges; the universities of Utah, Oregon, Pittsburgh, and Portland; KBOO radio (Portland), ABC and 3AW radio (Australia); the College Theology Society; National Public Radio's "Talk of the Nation," and in the PBS film Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero (2002).
Doyle was a native of New York, was fitfully educated at the University of Notre Dame, and was a magazine and newspaper journalist in Portland, Boston, and Chicago for more than twenty years. He was living in Portland, Oregon, with his family when died at age 60 from complications related to a brain tumor.
Doyle's essays have also been reprinted in:
* the Best American Essays anthologies of 1998, 1999, 2003, and 2005;
* in Best Spiritual Writing 1999, 2001, 2002, and 2005; and
* in Best Essays Northwest (2003);
* and in a dozen other anthologies and writing textbooks.
As for awards and honors, he had three startling children, an incomprehensible and fascinating marriage, and he was named to the 1983 Newton (Massachusetts) Men's Basketball League all-star team, and that was a really tough league.
Doyle delivered many dozens of peculiar and muttered speeches and lectures and rants about writing and stuttering grace at a variety of venues, among them Australian Catholic University and Xavier College (both in Melbourne, Australia), Aquinas Academy (in Sydney, Australia); Washington State, Seattle Pacific, Oregon, Utah State, Concordia, and Marylhurst universities; Boston, Lewis & Clark, and Linfield colleges; the universities of Utah, Oregon, Pittsburgh, and Portland; KBOO radio (Portland), ABC and 3AW radio (Australia); the College Theology Society; National Public Radio's "Talk of the Nation," and in the PBS film Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero (2002).
Doyle was a native of New York, was fitfully educated at the University of Notre Dame, and was a magazine and newspaper journalist in Portland, Boston, and Chicago for more than twenty years. He was living in Portland, Oregon, with his family when died at age 60 from complications related to a brain tumor.
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March 23, 2024
“… we are wild animals too, of course. We forget that. We’re just mammals with attitude. In a lot of ways our skills pale before their skills, and in a lot of ways we are terrible at fitting into our environmental niche. Why we achieved this dominance is sometimes a mystery to me, and a dangerous dominance it is too. The whole point of our evolution, it seems to me, is for us to find a way to fit back into the world as it is, rather than try to remake the world to fit us, but not everybody thinks like me.”
Brian Doyle never ignored the fact that humans are connected to the natural world in ways that many of us have failed to recognize or simply forgotten. His work (this is my third) explores this relationship with such grace and beauty. Although I love his non-fiction piece, Children and Other Wild Animals, a little more than this, I won’t soon forget these people of the hamlet of Zigzag or the little pine marten named Martin. The way Doyle parallels the lives of Dave, the teenaged boy, with Martin, a “teen” within the mustelid family, was clever. Doyle paints what I can’t help but call a heartwarming picture. It’s just too fitting! Dave’s relationship to his sister and his mother and father are depicted in relation to Martin’s relationship to his mother and sister. The only thing absent here is Martin’s father who suffered the fate of many animals in the wild. I already knew quite a bit about teenage boys, well, at least the bit about themselves that have been shared willingly with me as well as my own observations. What was new for me, however, were the delightful descriptions of the marten.
“… it was as if Time, who designs all beings and whittles them to their absolute essence, had decided to build the most perfect small mammalian hunting machine, mixing a bit of bear and lynx and hawk together into a small dose of cheerful, efficient predation, giving it the wildest wilderness for home and making its enemies few, relentless though they be…”
The character head count in this novel is pretty easy to keep track of. I recall having a little more difficulty when I read Mink River, though by the end I knew them as well as I would my own family. Each are so well drawn that they could walk off the page and you’d recognize them. The store owner Miss Moss and the trapper Mr. Douglas were high on my list of favorites. Their offbeat little romance is sometimes narrated straight from the horse’s mouth. Not joking. Mr. Douglas’ horse, Edwin, provides comic relief and wisdom in the strangest places.
“You two are always talking when you should be kissing and fencing when you should be wrestling. How human animals ever manage to reproduce is a mystery to me sometimes. So much chatter and jabber.”
Then there’s Moon, Dave’s best friend. He’s a privileged yet lonely soul, whose parents are often away from home. And Emma Jackson Beaton, a co-worker of Dave’s mom. It seems half the town has a crush on her, men and women alike, despite the fact she’s married to the never-seen-in-person Billy Beaton. Mr. Shapiro, the retired history teacher, and his rescue dog offer some insight into the affairs of the heart as well.
“… how can I call myself a historian if I cannot piece out some of the history of someone I live with? Although perhaps that’s the final frontier – maybe it’s easier to understand things you don’t love than things you do. The closer you are, the farther. That could be.”
There’s just a hint of a plot here. Mostly, it’s a slice of life in the lives of the people and animals of Zigzag and its surrounding wilderness. There’s some adventure and a nail-biting event, and – for my animal-loving friends – some true to life scenes of the perils animals face in their natural environments. There are predators and trappers and the everyday forces of nature. Some animals are harmed or killed. People die. Doyle presents this to us in a realistic fashion. He doesn’t depict gratuitous violence, nor does he gloss over or romanticize the truth of living in this world. He was a genuine and compassionate man who must have been a pleasure to have known. I have a limited amount of his work left to read, but I’m fortunate to have “met” him through the writings he left us before he passed at a much too early age.
“People are stories, aren’t they? And their stories keep changing and opening and closing and braiding and weaving and stitching and slamming to a halt and finding new doors and windows through which to tell themselves, isn’t that so? Isn’t that what happens to you all the time? It used to be when you were little that other people told you stories about yourself and where you came from, but then you began to tell your own story, and you find that your story keeps changing in thrilling and painful ways, and it’s never in one place. Maybe each of us is a sort of village, with lots of different beings living together under one head of hair, around the river of your pulse, the crossroads of who you were and who you wish to be.”
A few more favorites, because Brian Doyle is just so damn quotable!
“The fact is that the more stories we share about living beings, the more attentive we are to living beings, and perhaps the less willing we are to slaughter them and allow them to be slaughtered.”
“… being happy at someone else’s happiness, he is beginning dimly to realize, is a form of love.”
“That’s the final frontier for all of us. To take off as many masks as you can pry off and just be you.”
“That’s wonderful, to feel that ripple of fascination with someone, isn’t it? It’s always such a surprise – like a window opened suddenly, or a light clicks on where you didn’t even suspect there was a lamp. Of course, it’s always fraught with confusions and complications, but it’s such a lovely thing, the surprise, isn’t it?”
“Is this why we write and read, in the end, in order to find new words for the things we feel but do not have words for?”
Brian Doyle never ignored the fact that humans are connected to the natural world in ways that many of us have failed to recognize or simply forgotten. His work (this is my third) explores this relationship with such grace and beauty. Although I love his non-fiction piece, Children and Other Wild Animals, a little more than this, I won’t soon forget these people of the hamlet of Zigzag or the little pine marten named Martin. The way Doyle parallels the lives of Dave, the teenaged boy, with Martin, a “teen” within the mustelid family, was clever. Doyle paints what I can’t help but call a heartwarming picture. It’s just too fitting! Dave’s relationship to his sister and his mother and father are depicted in relation to Martin’s relationship to his mother and sister. The only thing absent here is Martin’s father who suffered the fate of many animals in the wild. I already knew quite a bit about teenage boys, well, at least the bit about themselves that have been shared willingly with me as well as my own observations. What was new for me, however, were the delightful descriptions of the marten.
“… it was as if Time, who designs all beings and whittles them to their absolute essence, had decided to build the most perfect small mammalian hunting machine, mixing a bit of bear and lynx and hawk together into a small dose of cheerful, efficient predation, giving it the wildest wilderness for home and making its enemies few, relentless though they be…”
The character head count in this novel is pretty easy to keep track of. I recall having a little more difficulty when I read Mink River, though by the end I knew them as well as I would my own family. Each are so well drawn that they could walk off the page and you’d recognize them. The store owner Miss Moss and the trapper Mr. Douglas were high on my list of favorites. Their offbeat little romance is sometimes narrated straight from the horse’s mouth. Not joking. Mr. Douglas’ horse, Edwin, provides comic relief and wisdom in the strangest places.
“You two are always talking when you should be kissing and fencing when you should be wrestling. How human animals ever manage to reproduce is a mystery to me sometimes. So much chatter and jabber.”
Then there’s Moon, Dave’s best friend. He’s a privileged yet lonely soul, whose parents are often away from home. And Emma Jackson Beaton, a co-worker of Dave’s mom. It seems half the town has a crush on her, men and women alike, despite the fact she’s married to the never-seen-in-person Billy Beaton. Mr. Shapiro, the retired history teacher, and his rescue dog offer some insight into the affairs of the heart as well.
“… how can I call myself a historian if I cannot piece out some of the history of someone I live with? Although perhaps that’s the final frontier – maybe it’s easier to understand things you don’t love than things you do. The closer you are, the farther. That could be.”
There’s just a hint of a plot here. Mostly, it’s a slice of life in the lives of the people and animals of Zigzag and its surrounding wilderness. There’s some adventure and a nail-biting event, and – for my animal-loving friends – some true to life scenes of the perils animals face in their natural environments. There are predators and trappers and the everyday forces of nature. Some animals are harmed or killed. People die. Doyle presents this to us in a realistic fashion. He doesn’t depict gratuitous violence, nor does he gloss over or romanticize the truth of living in this world. He was a genuine and compassionate man who must have been a pleasure to have known. I have a limited amount of his work left to read, but I’m fortunate to have “met” him through the writings he left us before he passed at a much too early age.
“People are stories, aren’t they? And their stories keep changing and opening and closing and braiding and weaving and stitching and slamming to a halt and finding new doors and windows through which to tell themselves, isn’t that so? Isn’t that what happens to you all the time? It used to be when you were little that other people told you stories about yourself and where you came from, but then you began to tell your own story, and you find that your story keeps changing in thrilling and painful ways, and it’s never in one place. Maybe each of us is a sort of village, with lots of different beings living together under one head of hair, around the river of your pulse, the crossroads of who you were and who you wish to be.”
A few more favorites, because Brian Doyle is just so damn quotable!
“The fact is that the more stories we share about living beings, the more attentive we are to living beings, and perhaps the less willing we are to slaughter them and allow them to be slaughtered.”
“… being happy at someone else’s happiness, he is beginning dimly to realize, is a form of love.”
“That’s the final frontier for all of us. To take off as many masks as you can pry off and just be you.”
“That’s wonderful, to feel that ripple of fascination with someone, isn’t it? It’s always such a surprise – like a window opened suddenly, or a light clicks on where you didn’t even suspect there was a lamp. Of course, it’s always fraught with confusions and complications, but it’s such a lovely thing, the surprise, isn’t it?”
“Is this why we write and read, in the end, in order to find new words for the things we feel but do not have words for?”
April 16, 2015
This is another splendid book from Brian Doyle. I swear he makes me nicer and smarter with each book of his that I read... Reading him somehow makes me feel that everything will be all right, and lets me think and know more about the natural parts of the world we live in. The books are filled with joy but not sloppy sentimental stuff. There is bone and gristle here, too, but it all fits together. Beautifully. 11 hundred stars out of 5.
March 15, 2015
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read Martin Marten. Last year I had the good fortune to win Brian Doyle's The Plover from a First Reads giveaway. And to my surprise I was completely enchanted by Doyle's quirky style and vision. So I was quite happy to have a chance to read an advance copy of Doyle's upcoming book and again I was enchanted. It is about Martin -- a young marten --yes the animal -- and Dave -- a teenage boy -- who live in a tiny community called ZigZag on a mountain in Oregon. There's not much of a plot, but Doyle does a brilliant job describing this community, its generous isolated residents and the natural world they live in. But trying to extract a plot is besides the point. Doyle does a lovely job creating a set of characters who one would want to sit down down with for a cup of tea. He also does an amazing job of bringing the natural world around them alive. It's a book to be read slowly at the meandering pace of the world in which it takes place. A book to be savoured. And it's probably not for everyone -- after all, it's partly told from the perspective of a marten called Martin -- but I was delighted a second time by Doyle's lovely idiosyncratic writing and sensibility. I am reminded to go back and read Doyle's earlier books and I will certainly be looking for his books in the future.
July 27, 2016
This was the book selected for my city's annual summer read, and what a selection! It is not often that I give a book five stars, but this book is so beautifully written that I knew even before I finished it that it would be more than worthy of every one of those five stars. I won't tell you the details of the plot here, just get yourself a copy and discover it for yourself.
Update 7/26/16: Last night was the author presentation for Lake Forest Park Reads, and author Brian Doyle was a delight! His presentation was hilariously funny, especially the tales he told about his big Irish family. In addition to the funny parts of the presentation, he revealed himself to be passionate about writing and the importance of stories in our everyday life and society. I loved the evening, laughed a lot, and got a little teary-eyed, too.
Update 7/26/16: Last night was the author presentation for Lake Forest Park Reads, and author Brian Doyle was a delight! His presentation was hilariously funny, especially the tales he told about his big Irish family. In addition to the funny parts of the presentation, he revealed himself to be passionate about writing and the importance of stories in our everyday life and society. I loved the evening, laughed a lot, and got a little teary-eyed, too.
December 15, 2025
I loved every page, every feeling, every thought in this lovely book. Stuffed with life, we spend a few seasons on Wy'East, the traditional name for Mount Hood, with residents of the area, some human, some wildlife, some domesticated, and all wonderfully engaging. I was so sorry when it ended.
December 3, 2019
Definitely one of my Top 3 reads of the year! Nourishing for the soul. I wanted this to go on and on forever.
April 29, 2024
As stated in status updates, Brian Doyle's gift of storytelling is magical in ways I never thought possible. His ability to see the world from a place of wonder, love, community and family is unrivaled. My journey began with reading "Mink River" which was magnificent. "The Plover" was equal yet different. With this book he uses a ground breaking approach to coming of age stories of both a boy and animal simultaneously. Due to his lyrical narratives and perspectives, reviewing is a difficult task.
We're taken to an Oregon forest 'hamlet' called Zigzag midway up Mt. Hood near the Zigzag river. Dave is 14, his sister Maria is 5 going on 30. His mother works in the laundry at the local lodge; his Dad the school janitor. They love both children dearly and things being as they are, make every effort to provide for them.
As we are introduced to the community we learn of animals that inhabit the area; among them a mother pine marten who's recently given birth to four, of which one the author has named Martin. Similar to Dave, as Martin matures he finds wonder in wildlife and 'animals' be they four or two-legged types.
Dave is both curious and industrious and visits the store/cafe owned by Miss Moss often. Wanting to contribute to his family's income, his well thought out employment proposal is quickly accepted and put to work at once. Since customers are locals and tourists, the store's offerings are diverse; among them wildlife pelts supplied by Dickie Douglas, aka Mr. Douglas a local trapper whose elderly horse is named Edwin. Dave is enamored by his stories of trapping and life which broaden his perspectives while maturing.
Maria is obsessed with mapping things be they geographical, anatomical or otherwise. Dave's best friend is Moon, an introverted geek whose affluent parents constantly travel. Other community members include his Mom's friend Emma Jackson Beaton; Mr and Mrs Robinson, the Unlabeled Woman who's helped by Mrs. Simmons, Dave's school teacher Mr. Shapiro, Louis a legendary elk, Dave's cross country running coach, Maria's pet Cassin finch and the legend of Joel Palmer, a path maker from yesteryear.
A story of relationships, change and challenges, Doyle uses a variety of points of view be they animal, human or otherwise. His stories defy genre categorization, are immersive, evocative and in some cases, life altering. This is a 'magical mystery tour', where the journey is engaging; the characters are luminescent and filled with surprise and story.
Brian's approach is that everything and every one IS a story. So we must ask ourselves, what would life be without them? You'll need an open mind and appreciation for creative storytelling that can often pose life altering questions. Simply know that his approach, narratives and views are unlike others but in a very, very good way :)
We're taken to an Oregon forest 'hamlet' called Zigzag midway up Mt. Hood near the Zigzag river. Dave is 14, his sister Maria is 5 going on 30. His mother works in the laundry at the local lodge; his Dad the school janitor. They love both children dearly and things being as they are, make every effort to provide for them.
As we are introduced to the community we learn of animals that inhabit the area; among them a mother pine marten who's recently given birth to four, of which one the author has named Martin. Similar to Dave, as Martin matures he finds wonder in wildlife and 'animals' be they four or two-legged types.
Dave is both curious and industrious and visits the store/cafe owned by Miss Moss often. Wanting to contribute to his family's income, his well thought out employment proposal is quickly accepted and put to work at once. Since customers are locals and tourists, the store's offerings are diverse; among them wildlife pelts supplied by Dickie Douglas, aka Mr. Douglas a local trapper whose elderly horse is named Edwin. Dave is enamored by his stories of trapping and life which broaden his perspectives while maturing.
Maria is obsessed with mapping things be they geographical, anatomical or otherwise. Dave's best friend is Moon, an introverted geek whose affluent parents constantly travel. Other community members include his Mom's friend Emma Jackson Beaton; Mr and Mrs Robinson, the Unlabeled Woman who's helped by Mrs. Simmons, Dave's school teacher Mr. Shapiro, Louis a legendary elk, Dave's cross country running coach, Maria's pet Cassin finch and the legend of Joel Palmer, a path maker from yesteryear.
A story of relationships, change and challenges, Doyle uses a variety of points of view be they animal, human or otherwise. His stories defy genre categorization, are immersive, evocative and in some cases, life altering. This is a 'magical mystery tour', where the journey is engaging; the characters are luminescent and filled with surprise and story.
Brian's approach is that everything and every one IS a story. So we must ask ourselves, what would life be without them? You'll need an open mind and appreciation for creative storytelling that can often pose life altering questions. Simply know that his approach, narratives and views are unlike others but in a very, very good way :)
May 21, 2016
Disclaimer: I'll state right up front that I'm a die-hard Brian Doyle fan, and this book is one reason why. Rather than go on and on about it, I'll just say it's magical, it could be life-altering--if you let it-- and it's just a damned good story. As Barbara McMichael deftly observed in her review, "OK, here are the ground rules: with the new novel _Martin Marten_, you’re going to have to suspend cynicism. You’ll need to relax all your 'impossible' rules, curl yourself up in your favorite reading nook with a cup of something hot to imbibe, and simply let author Brian Doyle whisk you away on this expansive, free-spirited ride." I second that.
If you want to read the rest of her review, which is quite good (and why I should go on and on when she nailed it) then go to this link, but whatever else you do, give yourself a treat and read Martin Marten. http://bit.ly/1HEpo11
If you want to read the rest of her review, which is quite good (and why I should go on and on when she nailed it) then go to this link, but whatever else you do, give yourself a treat and read Martin Marten. http://bit.ly/1HEpo11
October 26, 2024
Feeling in the mood for something pleasant and comfortable, I decided to give Martin Marten a try. My intuitions were correct, it certainly is both those things. While there isn’t much in the way of narrative drive, the setting, characters, and tone of Martin Marten are full of whimsy, charm, and humor. What surprised me, however, was how much this book has to offer beyond mere light enjoyment.
The “main” characters of this book are a teenage boy (Dave) and a young non-anthropomorphized Marten (Martin), and both are compelling. In reality though, Martin Marten is a wholistic story about Wy’east (Mt. Hood). This is true in a literal sense—many chapters are dedicated to things other than Dave and Martin (other humans, animals, plants, land, etc.), and also thematically—the book as a whole operates as a challenge to reductive anthropocentrism.
Above, I wrote that both the setting and the characters of this book are charming (which I stand by), but this praise is redundant with respect to Marten Martin, which explicitly rejects the distinction between setting and character. To Doyle, every being, and even every non-living thing on Wy’east is a character with a story that is worthwhile and exciting. This humble posture of radically inclusive reverence moved me deeply.
Finally, I appreciated that for all the grand romantic sentiment, the stories in this book are relatively understated. While there definitely are references to wildly improbable and outlandish events, Doyle doesn’t rely on fantastical, exaggerated storytelling to demonstrate the profound beauty and importance of all aspects of existence. The “climax” of this book is encounter between Dave and Martin, during which nothing happens other than their mere perception of the other.
Of this encounter, Doyle writes:
“How can we get all the way to this moment and run out of words? But you know, deep in your own bones, what they feel, though we cannot find the word. They see each other—and having seen and knowing the alps of the moment, each is..changed. Could it be that moments like that are why we invented religions and dream of peace in the bruised world and write books and music, trying to find the right sounds and stories for the thing we know but cannot say? If we ever succeed in naming it, would we be closer to achieving it? Is this why we write and read, in the end, in order to find new words for the things we feel but do not have words for?”
The “main” characters of this book are a teenage boy (Dave) and a young non-anthropomorphized Marten (Martin), and both are compelling. In reality though, Martin Marten is a wholistic story about Wy’east (Mt. Hood). This is true in a literal sense—many chapters are dedicated to things other than Dave and Martin (other humans, animals, plants, land, etc.), and also thematically—the book as a whole operates as a challenge to reductive anthropocentrism.
Above, I wrote that both the setting and the characters of this book are charming (which I stand by), but this praise is redundant with respect to Marten Martin, which explicitly rejects the distinction between setting and character. To Doyle, every being, and even every non-living thing on Wy’east is a character with a story that is worthwhile and exciting. This humble posture of radically inclusive reverence moved me deeply.
Finally, I appreciated that for all the grand romantic sentiment, the stories in this book are relatively understated. While there definitely are references to wildly improbable and outlandish events, Doyle doesn’t rely on fantastical, exaggerated storytelling to demonstrate the profound beauty and importance of all aspects of existence. The “climax” of this book is encounter between Dave and Martin, during which nothing happens other than their mere perception of the other.
Of this encounter, Doyle writes:
“How can we get all the way to this moment and run out of words? But you know, deep in your own bones, what they feel, though we cannot find the word. They see each other—and having seen and knowing the alps of the moment, each is..changed. Could it be that moments like that are why we invented religions and dream of peace in the bruised world and write books and music, trying to find the right sounds and stories for the thing we know but cannot say? If we ever succeed in naming it, would we be closer to achieving it? Is this why we write and read, in the end, in order to find new words for the things we feel but do not have words for?”
February 22, 2018
This is the first book I've read since Brian Doyle died, and again, as I read his words, I was struck by what an empty spot Doyle left behind. From all accounts he was a good man, a good husband, a good father, a good friend. But for me, what I feel is the loss of an amazing writer.
I have read nothing like this. Martin Marten is pure Doyle, and it was so delicious to slip into his rolling sentences, to shift from animal to human to things that are not and yet are. In these pages are the pangs of thrills of growing up, of sliding from childhood to adulthood, of taking on responsibility while still figuring out what your life is going to be about. And here, too, are examples of love, of new love, of failed love, of enduring love, of love that exists beyond death. And isn't it always this way about Doyle; even in the harsh realities of life, love remains a grace that bolsters.
Martin Marten is a marvelous book. We don't get explanations about relationships. Just delicate and powerful observations from a writer who has the amazing ability to spill language from his soul.
I have read nothing like this. Martin Marten is pure Doyle, and it was so delicious to slip into his rolling sentences, to shift from animal to human to things that are not and yet are. In these pages are the pangs of thrills of growing up, of sliding from childhood to adulthood, of taking on responsibility while still figuring out what your life is going to be about. And here, too, are examples of love, of new love, of failed love, of enduring love, of love that exists beyond death. And isn't it always this way about Doyle; even in the harsh realities of life, love remains a grace that bolsters.
Martin Marten is a marvelous book. We don't get explanations about relationships. Just delicate and powerful observations from a writer who has the amazing ability to spill language from his soul.
August 15, 2015
"Martin Marten" does for Mt. Hood what "Mink River" did for the Oregon coast; that is, it somehow shows just how whimsical and quaint a small town can be, and to such a degree that you fall in love with Doyle's version of this place and secretly want to live there. Martin Marten follows the lives of two inhabitants of "the Zag" near Rhododendron on Mt. Hood: an adolescent boy named Dave and a marten named Martin (just go with it!). Told in Doyle's distinctive attention to minute details and things often unseen, "Martin Marten" is bursting with the adventures of not only Dave and Martin, but all the millions of inhabitants (animal, vegetable AND mineral) on this small patch of land on the side of a mountain. Doyle's fervent affection for both humans and non-humans is the foundation of this story of survival, home, family, coming of age, love, and grace.
Doyle has a sharp eye for breathtaking beauty and a sharp ear for dialogue, and his staggering language will wrap you up in its enormous embrace and take you on a trip so unusual and so entertaining, you will love every minute of it. His style is so remarkable, it doesn't go too far to tap him as one of Oregon's most beloved wordsmiths.
Doyle has a sharp eye for breathtaking beauty and a sharp ear for dialogue, and his staggering language will wrap you up in its enormous embrace and take you on a trip so unusual and so entertaining, you will love every minute of it. His style is so remarkable, it doesn't go too far to tap him as one of Oregon's most beloved wordsmiths.
January 13, 2018
This is a story about everyday miracles. The author excels at getting into the minds of wild creatures and making human-animal interaction that some may scoff at believable. If you enjoy a little magical realism, love nature, and enjoy spending time in a small mountain town with real people, you would probably really like this book!
A few notes: I thought the pacing was a little off in this. Something pretty heart-stopping happens about halfway through, and something a little less impactful a little ways on.....and then the finish was almost expected and pretty much moot. But he writes so beautifully and captures the human experience so succinctly and wonderfully that I think a full four stars still could be a bit low for this.
The audio was good, not great, and pretty slow. The Audible app allows listeners to adjust the speed, which I found useful pretty much the whole way through. The narrator was much better at delivering dialogue than narration.
A solid read, especially for fans of small-town fiction who are nature lovers.
A few notes: I thought the pacing was a little off in this. Something pretty heart-stopping happens about halfway through, and something a little less impactful a little ways on.....and then the finish was almost expected and pretty much moot. But he writes so beautifully and captures the human experience so succinctly and wonderfully that I think a full four stars still could be a bit low for this.
The audio was good, not great, and pretty slow. The Audible app allows listeners to adjust the speed, which I found useful pretty much the whole way through. The narrator was much better at delivering dialogue than narration.
A solid read, especially for fans of small-town fiction who are nature lovers.
November 6, 2025
A sweet, comprehensive portrait of the ecosystems, human and all else, atop Mt. Wy’East (Hood) near Portland, OR. The dual narratives allow Doyle to revel in his favorite stylistic flourish: lists upon lists upon lists. Some land profoundly: wow, God really did make a crazy and cool and beautiful and sublime universe! What wonder and awe. Others taste a bit too saccharine and cheesy.
August 11, 2023
What will you find in this book? What I did: growing humans, animals of all the types you'd expect on a mountain, nature wide-open and ready to share the best parts. . .in the most innocent of ways. Still there's death and the stark truths of nature, but there's sweet tastes and pure joy, too.
This read is a kind of sweet lullaby and was a restful comfort during a difficult time, about a place I love. Stories that consider the POV of furry creatures have always pulled me in, and one that so smoothly combined growing humans and all the ages and attitudes of animals domestic and wild called me out of my sorrows to attend to their battles and victories. Mine were not so urgent, nor was the prize so necessary. I was caught, enraptured and felt needed.
If you haven't read this, do. If you have, read it again. If you are a reader to others - read it aloud and feel the wonder of it. The writing itself is a joy to speak out loud.
This read is a kind of sweet lullaby and was a restful comfort during a difficult time, about a place I love. Stories that consider the POV of furry creatures have always pulled me in, and one that so smoothly combined growing humans and all the ages and attitudes of animals domestic and wild called me out of my sorrows to attend to their battles and victories. Mine were not so urgent, nor was the prize so necessary. I was caught, enraptured and felt needed.
If you haven't read this, do. If you have, read it again. If you are a reader to others - read it aloud and feel the wonder of it. The writing itself is a joy to speak out loud.
March 9, 2021
This is a coming-of-age story about two males: one is a 14-year old human (Dave) and the other is a young marten (Martin.) Dave lives with his hardworking parents and little sister in a cabin on Mount Hood (or as Brian Doyle prefers to call it, Wy'east, its Native American name.) The parallels and contrasts between their two lives, their struggles and successes, their periodic sightings of each other, made this a “feel good” story. Doyle’s philosophy of caring for each other and the land and plants, animals, insects, etc. will appeal to nature lovers. I especially liked Dave’s spunky little sister and Martin’s live-saving heroics. After awhile, I got bored.
April 30, 2018
This BOOK. So unlike the majority of other books I’ve read recently. It felt tender and kind. Not saccharine, and not twee, but a sweet story of a place and people that we all should aspire to (well, in ways). There is something deep about this book (and maybe unwritten?) that gets to the values I want my life to revolve around. I will say it was a slow burn for me in the beginning, but by the end, I was all hearts-for-eyes. Let’s build this. Big hat tip to Stasia for her review and recommendation... as she put it: this book is about all the right things.
September 6, 2016
Doyle's writing is like jumping into a pool of happiness. It fills me with wonder. The story about the coming-of-age of a boy and a young marten on the slopes of Mt. Hood is only the container for the love I wish existed among us all. I strongly recommend this book and another of his, Mink River.
Doyle is an engaging speaker. If you get a chance go listen to him.
Doyle is an engaging speaker. If you get a chance go listen to him.
December 7, 2016
There were many things I liked about this book. I appreciated the unusual narrative style, where an omniscient narrator commented on not only the characters' actions, but on elements of the Oregon mountain environment. At times, though, this style distanced me from the characters and became precious instead of illuminating.
September 28, 2021
Well now I have to read everything this guy ever wrote. One of the best books I've ever read and I have no idea how to explain why or what it's even about.
August 16, 2021
Martens, they are in the weasel family, but oh so cute! I'd probably only heard of a marten in passing before starting this charming book, starring mainly a wild marten and a teen-aged boy and set in a remote mountain in Washington where a small town exists. The story has vignettes about many of the townspeople, and also many of the forest animals in the area, and often about how they intertwine. It has a very writerly feel to it, and quite a naturalist message. A gentle story, with such support and kindness shown to all creatures that it will stay pleasantly in your mind for the good feelings it leaves.
I had to look up words freqnently as I was going. I looked up "redolent" four times! How long can it take me to add that word to my vocabularly? I'm still struggling with it.
I had to look up words freqnently as I was going. I looked up "redolent" four times! How long can it take me to add that word to my vocabularly? I'm still struggling with it.
March 26, 2016
You guys. I wanted to LOVE this book. And I did love some things about it. I just had a really hard time with the blend of really solid realistic nature writing, deeply held philosophical ideas that I don't hold (it hurts a carrot when you eat it, for example), and the combination of deep interior lives for the animals in the story with fairly surface descriptions of the interior lives of the humans in the story. The narrator of this work would tell me that's because I am human-centric, and I think he'd say it with a bit of a sneer. Martin himself is a marvelous creation, and I truly loved every bit of his time gamboling about, and growing and learning and living, observing the forest and the people around him. Dave, also wonderfully made. I was very impressed by his growth throughout the story, and I liked him very much. Moon, his best friend, delightful. I enjoyed every moment of their interactions. To be clear, Martin is a marten, and Dave and Moon are boys. Dave's little sister, oh, lovely girl. Mr. Douglas, the trapper, is a strong and solid character who is a true naturalist and defender of the wild, even as he makes his living from trapping the animals who live there. So much to like in this book! But, overall, I just really didn't enjoy the tone. I felt that the agenda overwhelmed the story. Also, I just could not get past the knowing inner monologue of the horse. I don't buy it. I'm totally fine with talking horses in a different kind of book, comedy or fantasy or defter magic realism, but here it just pulled me out of the world altogether. I wish it didn't. I liked the parts that I liked so much! I really wanted to love this book.
October 17, 2018
This book is filled with good, meaningful, emotionally moving narrative. It was like being in a class where the teacher, a philosopher and naturalist, will just not give up on impressing us intellectually and morally, writing character building scenes on every page. Probably just me but I reacted by listening to lots of loud music heavy on the repetitive bass. Even through the heavy bass line I can hear him telling me about life and death, people, animals, relationships, mountain life.... . I was never so happy to get to the end of a good book. Damn fine book if you can take the moralizing, philosophizing teacher voice.
May 13, 2020
Five easy stars. I loved this gentle story and the gorgeous, humane writing. I loved every character, from Dave and Martin and their little sisters to Louis and Edwin and Cosmas and the Robinsons and all the rest.
It was a bit idyllic, but I thought it did a great job of modeling how we should all treat each other. I loved how some of the "hard" conversations were portrayed.
I also really liked that these were all relatively healthy relationships and at the center an honest, functional family. No missing parent, no sad orphan here. The adults in this story act like adults and speak to all creatures with dignity and respect.
Would re-read. In fact, I can't wait.
It was a bit idyllic, but I thought it did a great job of modeling how we should all treat each other. I loved how some of the "hard" conversations were portrayed.
I also really liked that these were all relatively healthy relationships and at the center an honest, functional family. No missing parent, no sad orphan here. The adults in this story act like adults and speak to all creatures with dignity and respect.
Would re-read. In fact, I can't wait.
December 1, 2023
Always a delight to read any Brian Doyle book or collection of writings!
He shared his love of nature, flawed humanity with so much warmth and grace. And he did it with less commas, more run-on creative sentences and such overflowing goodwill!
He made both Oregon and the world of reading better places!!
He shared his love of nature, flawed humanity with so much warmth and grace. And he did it with less commas, more run-on creative sentences and such overflowing goodwill!
He made both Oregon and the world of reading better places!!
June 13, 2018
One of the most unique books I‘ve ever read.
February 4, 2021
EXACT RATING: 4.50 stars
I really loved this book. On the surface, it's about a marten and a boy and how their lives intersect and intertwine. It's also about how we (human animals) relate to the rest of the animal kingdom, but I think the real theme is even broader than that. It's about how we as individual beings find our place within the rest of the natural world.
"The whole point of our evolution, it seems to me, is for us to find a way to fit back into the world as it is, rather than try to remake the world."
It's a story about relationships. The relationship between a boy and a marten. The relationship between a brother and sister. Between a horse and a man. Between two potential lovers. Between life and death. Between love and music. Between learning about history and understanding the present.
"We are bound each to each in this place even if we don't admit it."
This book has such an optimistic view of humanity, and it was so refreshing. There isn't a single creature in this book that isn't described with utmost respect and endowed with intrinsic value based only on their existence.
"The fact is that the more stories we share about living beings, the more attentive we are to living beings."
I'll mention a couple aspects that I didn't love.
Firstly, although this book had conflict and death and tribulations, it is mostly just pure sweetness. I like that it represents almost an idealized version of humanity, all characters huddled on the side of a mountain in a very communal, altruistic society. But I think at certain points the story bordered on saccharinity.
Secondly, there are many times in the book that the author chooses to back away from the traditional third-person narrative to directly address the reader. Sometimes it added clarity or depth, but other times I found that it took me out of the story. Actually, there were a few instances when I felt like the author was attempting to lamp-shade some improbable occurrence. But I don't think I would have felt the improbability as deeply if it wasn't called out directly. One example of this is when Martin fights off an attack from a grey fox (~"now it may seem unlikely that a marten could kill a fox that is nearly ten times its size), and another is when Martin and Dave (the boy) meet on a rocky outcropping (~"what are the chances that both boy and marten would head for exactly the same spot at exactly the same time? they must be infinitesimal).
Overall, I really, really enjoyed it.
I really loved this book. On the surface, it's about a marten and a boy and how their lives intersect and intertwine. It's also about how we (human animals) relate to the rest of the animal kingdom, but I think the real theme is even broader than that. It's about how we as individual beings find our place within the rest of the natural world.
"The whole point of our evolution, it seems to me, is for us to find a way to fit back into the world as it is, rather than try to remake the world."
It's a story about relationships. The relationship between a boy and a marten. The relationship between a brother and sister. Between a horse and a man. Between two potential lovers. Between life and death. Between love and music. Between learning about history and understanding the present.
"We are bound each to each in this place even if we don't admit it."
This book has such an optimistic view of humanity, and it was so refreshing. There isn't a single creature in this book that isn't described with utmost respect and endowed with intrinsic value based only on their existence.
"The fact is that the more stories we share about living beings, the more attentive we are to living beings."
I'll mention a couple aspects that I didn't love.
Firstly, although this book had conflict and death and tribulations, it is mostly just pure sweetness. I like that it represents almost an idealized version of humanity, all characters huddled on the side of a mountain in a very communal, altruistic society. But I think at certain points the story bordered on saccharinity.
Secondly, there are many times in the book that the author chooses to back away from the traditional third-person narrative to directly address the reader. Sometimes it added clarity or depth, but other times I found that it took me out of the story. Actually, there were a few instances when I felt like the author was attempting to lamp-shade some improbable occurrence. But I don't think I would have felt the improbability as deeply if it wasn't called out directly. One example of this is when Martin fights off an attack from a grey fox (~"now it may seem unlikely that a marten could kill a fox that is nearly ten times its size), and another is when Martin and Dave (the boy) meet on a rocky outcropping (~"what are the chances that both boy and marten would head for exactly the same spot at exactly the same time? they must be infinitesimal).
Overall, I really, really enjoyed it.
February 6, 2025
"A lot of a place is made up of voices. A lot of it is what happened in that air, on that water, in those woods. Most of a place is not what humans think. Maybe we will be better human beings when we begin to see all the other things a place is besides all the things we think it is or wanted it to be."
Dave is 14 and growing up in a small community on the side of Mt Hood (Wy'east is how they refer to it, using it's original one). He's not the only one coming of age in the area, though. Martin, a pine marten, is born at the opening of the novel and his growth and coming of age in the woods parallels Dave. While this is a story about Dave and his family. It's more a story of the community - both human and animal - whose lives and experiences intertwine in a rich way. It's not linear storytelling with a clearly defined plot, but it is a wonderful embrace of the way we live and connect. As a bonus, there is an unwedding at the end that will stay with me as such a beautiful moment.
Dave is 14 and growing up in a small community on the side of Mt Hood (Wy'east is how they refer to it, using it's original one). He's not the only one coming of age in the area, though. Martin, a pine marten, is born at the opening of the novel and his growth and coming of age in the woods parallels Dave. While this is a story about Dave and his family. It's more a story of the community - both human and animal - whose lives and experiences intertwine in a rich way. It's not linear storytelling with a clearly defined plot, but it is a wonderful embrace of the way we live and connect. As a bonus, there is an unwedding at the end that will stay with me as such a beautiful moment.
August 30, 2018
Loved Doyle’s story-telling style, his flowing sentences and thoughts. I almost could feel him telling the story directly to me. The philosophy about life throughout the book provide wonderful gems for thinking. And I want to be on a trail or in my kayak by myself and have a momentary connection with an animal.... I’m off for a hike!
August 29, 2017
I am so sad he is gone. His books are great to listen to, he usually narrates them himself.
January 3, 2023
I love this book. In fact, it is now my favorite book of all time (well, tied—I’m giving up the hierarchy!). Every single page was a delight. All the characters, including (actually mostly) the animals are memorable and beautifully drawn. And it takes place on Mount Hood! I think this is even better than Mink River, but I need to go back and read that one again to tell. I have been smiling for a week since finishing this book. And yes, as I exclaimed to myself after 20 pages, the main character is actually a marten (sort of a small fox-like creature).
As I mentioned in my review of Mink River, Doyle is the master of lists. Here is a description of the change in teenage Dave, to give you a sample:
“... after which—as the Spanish teacher Ms. Ishimira expressed it—an evil vernal demon occupied the boy formerly known as Dave, creating a lazy, sneering, untrustworthy, rude, vulgar, grumpy, disgruntled, sarcastic, supercilious, rude, offensive, snide young man whom no student wanted to be with, no teacher wanted to teach, and no one except perhaps Jesus or Nelson Mandela could reach, which was a shame, because the Old Dave was a fascinating boy whose thirsty curiosity was often the best part of my day, she said, and then she burst into tears. [I have a cold, she explained…]”
On a sad note, I just read that Brian Doyle died in 2017 of a brain tumor. His picture on the jacket of “Martin Marten” looks so young! I am so sad! Sadder still and inexplicable, my library system stocks none of Doyle’s books on paper.
As I mentioned in my review of Mink River, Doyle is the master of lists. Here is a description of the change in teenage Dave, to give you a sample:
“... after which—as the Spanish teacher Ms. Ishimira expressed it—an evil vernal demon occupied the boy formerly known as Dave, creating a lazy, sneering, untrustworthy, rude, vulgar, grumpy, disgruntled, sarcastic, supercilious, rude, offensive, snide young man whom no student wanted to be with, no teacher wanted to teach, and no one except perhaps Jesus or Nelson Mandela could reach, which was a shame, because the Old Dave was a fascinating boy whose thirsty curiosity was often the best part of my day, she said, and then she burst into tears. [I have a cold, she explained…]”
On a sad note, I just read that Brian Doyle died in 2017 of a brain tumor. His picture on the jacket of “Martin Marten” looks so young! I am so sad! Sadder still and inexplicable, my library system stocks none of Doyle’s books on paper.
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