Theses and Dissertations Collection

“Sometimes the Way In” is a creative work of nonfiction in which place and body play a significant role. In each of these essays, the speaker engages in a deep experiential study of landscape, using knowledge from years of living in Idaho in an almost almanac fashion. The essays are also concerned with the ephemeral and examine life and death—both human and animal—in western landscapes. Throughout the essays, Fuhrman also explores identity, particularly for a Native woman in the West. Certain motifs continue to arise throughout this work, including guns, deer, and family. These motifs seem to echo the determination and vulnerability of the speaker and of the landscape in general. The collection ends with a look back through the various essays, which may also be seen as walks, as the speaker considers the coming fall and her own physical and emotional changes.