Wolfer: A Memoir

In this colorful memoir, Niemeyer explores a life shaped by wolves, suspicious ranchers, intrepid trappers, other extraordinary characters, and convoluted politics. "Wolves had a way of working their way into my life," Niemeyer writes, "like a worm through an apple. They are just animals, of course, but they have a way of making people nuts, and for that matter, attracting nutty people." A government expert who reintroduced endangered gray wolves to the West, Niemeyer works day and night to become a revered wildlife expert and develop a real understanding of the often unjustly maligned wolf. Among the book's many engaging anecdotes are stories about grinding up prairie dogs for bait, flea treatments for trappers, and capturing a dart-gunned grizzly. Niemeyer's cogent tale is full of empathy, and his adventures and the mind-boggling challenges he faces will rivet readers.