Books like American buffalo by Steven Rinella

In 2005, Steven Rinella entered a lottery for a rare permit to hunt a wild American buffalo in Alaska. With only a 2 % odds of gain and fewer than 20 % of permit holders actually succeeding, he captured a buffalo on a snow‑capped mountainside, then rafted the meat back to civilization while evading grizzly bears and fighting hypothermia. Through this daring expedition, Rinella reflects on his place among the 14,000‑year legacy of North American buffalo hunters and the animal’s role in shaping the American imagination. He traces buffalo history from pre‑colonial Bering Land Bridge sites to 19th‑century buffalo jumps, the booming buffalo‑bone industry at Detroit’s Carbon Works, and even a Manhattan abattoir that supplied the iconic nickel’s model. The book blends adventure, scientific facts, and historical context to illuminate how the buffalo’s decline and gradual ecological recovery mirror America’s evolving relationship with its wilderness.

First publish date: 2008