Fromm's latest book is more than a wilderness adventure

Sometimes a great story takes years to write. That could be said for Pete Fromm’s latest book “The Names of the Stars.” The book is a memoir about Fromm’s time in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, tending to grayling fry for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks in the North Fork of the Sun River at Gates Park.

He spent a solid month in the wilderness in the spring of 2004. At the time, Fromm thought the experience would make a good book — he did a similar stint in the wilderness years ago as a 19-year-old, which culminated into the book, “Indian Creek Chronicles.”

Even today, Fromm said in an interview last week, Indian Creek continues to sell well, particularly in France of all places.

But when Fromm came out of the wilderness on his second stint, the book didn’t come together as he hoped.

“It was so boring,” he said.

So he worked at it a little at a time, writing a novel and a short story collection in between while he plugged away on the “The Names of the Stars.” And in those 12 years the story went about from being a man who spends a month alone in the wilderness to a story about a man’s love for his wife and boys and the woods and how, sometimes — many times — those two loves don’t come together.

“It took a long time to figure out (the book) was about my kids,” he said.

Along the way there are chapters about Fromm that fill in the back story of his life as a young ranger working for the Park Service, running the Snake River in the Tetons, a stint at Big Bend National Park and another at Lake Mead in Nevada.

At first blush it might sound like a mess, but it all comes together beautifully and anyone who has ever left a child at home while heading off to the hills will immediately appreciate the story. Fromm’s easy pose is akin to other great outdoor writers, particularly John Gierach, who ostensibly writes about fishing but always has more to say.

Fromm answers his one big question.

“How did I become so (messed) up?”

Without spoiling the book, let’s just say it took a lot of miles, a little luck with grizzly bears and a good doctor.

“I’m not a philosopher,” Fromm said. “I don’t sit around thinking deep thoughts.”

This is Fromm’s 11th book. He soon will come out with a short story collection and another novel. He has won the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Literary Award five times for his work.

His book, “As Cool As I Am” was made into a feature film.

Yet Fromm’s advice to young writers in the West is simple.

“Marry someone with a good job,” he quipped. His wife, Rose, is an engineer. She never reads his books, he said.

On a more serious note, Fromm, who also teaches a writing class each year, said the craft takes a “ton of practice.”

“You’ve got to write and you have to read non-stop,” he said.

Fromm will read from “Names of the Stars” tonight — Wednesday — at Flathead Valley Community College Art’s and Technology Building as part of the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation’s winter speaker series from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

The event is free and open to the public.