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Hotshot: A Life on Fire
The fierce debut memoir of a female firefighter, Hotshot navigates the personal and environmental dangers of wildland firefighting
From 2000 to 2010, River Selby was a wildland firefighter whose given name was Anastasia. This is a memoir of that time in their life—of Ana, the struggles she encountered, and the contours of what it meant to be female-bodied in a male-dominated profession.
By the time they were 19, Selby had been homeless, addicted to drugs, and sexually assaulted more than once. In a last-ditch effort to find direction, they applied to be a wildland firefighter. Soon immersed in the world of firefighting and its arcana—from specialized tools named for the fire pioneers who invented them, to the back-breaking labor of racing against time to create firebreaks—Selby began to find an internal balance. Then, after two years of ragtag contract firefighting, Selby joined an elite class of specially trained wildland firefighters known as hotshots.
Over the course of five fire seasons, Selby delves into the world of the people—almost entirely men—who risk their lives to fight and sometimes prevent wildfires. Marked out in a sea of machismo, Selby was simultaneously hyper visible and invisible, and Hotshot deftly parses the odd mix of camaraderie and rampant sexism she experienced on her fire crews, and how, when challenged, it resulted in a violent closing of ranks that excluded her from the work she’d come to love. Drawing on years of firsthand experience on the frontlines of fire, followed by years of research into the science and history of fire, Hotshot also reckons with our fraught stewardship of the land—how federal fire policy is maladapted to the realities of fire-prone landscapes and how it has led to ever more severe fire seasons.
Hotshot is a work of intimacy and authority, nimbly merging a personal journey of reinvention and self-acceptance with expert insight into the textured history of ecological systems and Indigenous land tending, the modern practices that have led to their imbalance, and the people who fight fire.
From 2000 to 2010, River Selby was a wildland firefighter whose given name was Anastasia. This is a memoir of that time in their life—of Ana, the struggles she encountered, and the contours of what it meant to be female-bodied in a male-dominated profession.
By the time they were 19, Selby had been homeless, addicted to drugs, and sexually assaulted more than once. In a last-ditch effort to find direction, they applied to be a wildland firefighter. Soon immersed in the world of firefighting and its arcana—from specialized tools named for the fire pioneers who invented them, to the back-breaking labor of racing against time to create firebreaks—Selby began to find an internal balance. Then, after two years of ragtag contract firefighting, Selby joined an elite class of specially trained wildland firefighters known as hotshots.
Over the course of five fire seasons, Selby delves into the world of the people—almost entirely men—who risk their lives to fight and sometimes prevent wildfires. Marked out in a sea of machismo, Selby was simultaneously hyper visible and invisible, and Hotshot deftly parses the odd mix of camaraderie and rampant sexism she experienced on her fire crews, and how, when challenged, it resulted in a violent closing of ranks that excluded her from the work she’d come to love. Drawing on years of firsthand experience on the frontlines of fire, followed by years of research into the science and history of fire, Hotshot also reckons with our fraught stewardship of the land—how federal fire policy is maladapted to the realities of fire-prone landscapes and how it has led to ever more severe fire seasons.
Hotshot is a work of intimacy and authority, nimbly merging a personal journey of reinvention and self-acceptance with expert insight into the textured history of ecological systems and Indigenous land tending, the modern practices that have led to their imbalance, and the people who fight fire.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published August 12, 2025
70 people are currently reading
6272 people want to read
About the author
River Selby
1 book39 followersRiver Selby worked as a wildland firefighter for seven years, stationed out of California, Oregon, Colorado, and Alaska.
They are currently a Kingsbury and Legacy Fellow at Florida State University, where they are pursuing their PhD in Nonfiction with an emphasis in postcolonial histories, North American colonization, and postmodern literature and culture. River has spent nearly a decade researching the history of fire suppression in the United States, Indigenous fire and land-tending practices, climate change impacts, and ecological adaptations across North American landscapes. Their research is informed by their extensive field experience.
River is a first generation high-school and college graduate. They hold an MFA in fiction from Syracuse University, and a BA in English and Textual Studies from the same institution, where they served as a Remembrance Scholar before graduating summa cum laude, with honors. River also received a Critical Language Scholarship for Hindi and served as a Fulbright ETA in the Czech Republic.
Hotshot: A Life on Fire is their first book.
River was born in Los Angeles and grew up in the Pacific Northwest.
Visit their website at https://www.riverselby.com and find them on Instagram @riverselby.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
August 28, 2025
Got the audiobook for review.
This was such an indebt memoir in not just wildlife, her work, history and environment but also her personal life and the many struggles and difficult things she had to go trough. It was an heavy book to listen to but the narration was great and the book as whole was able to fit many diffrent things without anything feeling less.
This was such an indebt memoir in not just wildlife, her work, history and environment but also her personal life and the many struggles and difficult things she had to go trough. It was an heavy book to listen to but the narration was great and the book as whole was able to fit many diffrent things without anything feeling less.
August 16, 2025
A very intimate memoir of a female firefighter which shows the personal and environmental dangers of wildland firefighting.
You get history, environmental facts, tense scenes, sexism, personal relationships, and rocky mental health.
The author has a very vivid way of writing the decoration left by the fires. I could almost smell the smoke and feel the crunching bush under my feet.
Whilst I think there was slightly too much indulgence in the personal for a book about wild firefighting, it did make the author feel more real and broken. Trigger warnings for eating disorders, substance abuse.bad relationships, family issues, sexual assault.
This is a very brave story to tell and I wish the author the happiest of futures.
Audiobooks arc gifted by publisher.
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You get history, environmental facts, tense scenes, sexism, personal relationships, and rocky mental health.
The author has a very vivid way of writing the decoration left by the fires. I could almost smell the smoke and feel the crunching bush under my feet.
Whilst I think there was slightly too much indulgence in the personal for a book about wild firefighting, it did make the author feel more real and broken. Trigger warnings for eating disorders, substance abuse.bad relationships, family issues, sexual assault.
This is a very brave story to tell and I wish the author the happiest of futures.
Audiobooks arc gifted by publisher.
Bookstagram
Tiktok
July 28, 2025
River Selby's debut novel is all at once a gripping, educational, and poignant memoir. Selby has seamlessly woven their wildland firefighting experiences with fire suppression history, drawing in details of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), policy, and the west's ragged history of colonization for a must-read in understanding the complexities of wildfires in the western US.
Selby's writing draws on their personal experiences navigating trauma, grief, and rampant sexism in the industry with well-researched historical context, pulling the reader into each firefighting season. I spent time studying Ethics and Restoration in graduate school, which touched on TEK and fire suppression history. Selby's book would have fit the curriculum perfectly! I learned so much from this novel, including the differences in management of National Parks versus lands owned by the Forest Service, how fire suppression includes intentionally lit fires, and how entwined US history and policy is with the management of fire.
At the same time, "Hotshot" is an important memoir in shifting the culture and instilling zero-tolerance policies against discrimination, harassment, violence. "It's my belief that this harassment, discrimination, and the risk of violence will never go away until we address the power structures within these agencies, which allow those at the top, like superintendents and district rangers, to dictate the cultures of their crews and districts," Selby writes. I couldn't agree more.
To the author, thank you for sharing your vulnerability with the world and congratulations on a beautiful debut novel.
Selby's writing draws on their personal experiences navigating trauma, grief, and rampant sexism in the industry with well-researched historical context, pulling the reader into each firefighting season. I spent time studying Ethics and Restoration in graduate school, which touched on TEK and fire suppression history. Selby's book would have fit the curriculum perfectly! I learned so much from this novel, including the differences in management of National Parks versus lands owned by the Forest Service, how fire suppression includes intentionally lit fires, and how entwined US history and policy is with the management of fire.
At the same time, "Hotshot" is an important memoir in shifting the culture and instilling zero-tolerance policies against discrimination, harassment, violence. "It's my belief that this harassment, discrimination, and the risk of violence will never go away until we address the power structures within these agencies, which allow those at the top, like superintendents and district rangers, to dictate the cultures of their crews and districts," Selby writes. I couldn't agree more.
To the author, thank you for sharing your vulnerability with the world and congratulations on a beautiful debut novel.
August 16, 2025
Just...Wow.
While I read the introduction, not even the first chapter, I felt a growing fire in my belly. Learning about the author’s tragic and triumphant life story immediately struck something deep in me.
Their story is one of surviving a life that felt like a raw, inflamed wound- a pain so constant they had become numb to it. But slowly, that same fire began to heal them, fusing the broken pieces into something stronger.
In the introduction, River shares that they are non-binary and have endured profound loss, including family trauma and an eating disorder. Their life felt so fragile, as if it could be blown away like ashes... and yet, they were refined by the fire.
As a non-binary individual myself, I want to thank River for the immense courage it took to tell Ana's story with such heart and vulnerability. It’s a powerful, necessary book.
While I read the introduction, not even the first chapter, I felt a growing fire in my belly. Learning about the author’s tragic and triumphant life story immediately struck something deep in me.
Their story is one of surviving a life that felt like a raw, inflamed wound- a pain so constant they had become numb to it. But slowly, that same fire began to heal them, fusing the broken pieces into something stronger.
In the introduction, River shares that they are non-binary and have endured profound loss, including family trauma and an eating disorder. Their life felt so fragile, as if it could be blown away like ashes... and yet, they were refined by the fire.
As a non-binary individual myself, I want to thank River for the immense courage it took to tell Ana's story with such heart and vulnerability. It’s a powerful, necessary book.
July 20, 2025
An ambitious and stunning debut. I’m blown away by how much experience and information this book synthesizes. It’s many things at once: a well-researched history of fire, indigenous land stewardship, colonization, and climate change; an emotionally charged memoir of searching for identity and navigating trauma and grief; a thoughtful meditation on humanity’s relationship to the natural world. “When we can understand the land as part of us rather than separate, the potential for healing is infinite,” Selby writes.
July 10, 2025
Thank you to Grove Atlantic for an advanced copy of Hotshot!
I found this book to be simultaneously devastating and empowering and, above all else, immensely readable. This is not a memoir about fighting fire; it's a memoir about how fighting fire fits into a big, complicated life, and how this wild, intense and—at times—traumatic job kept River coming back against all odds. There's also just the right amount of ecological and historical context to provide the reader with a bit of a broader understanding of firefighting, fire ecology and Indigenous fire practices across North America.
As a former (female-identifying) wildland firefighter and hotshot, the thing I most loved about this book was that it validated so many of the complicated emotions I often felt working in fire, but which I didn’t have the language for until reading this book. I rarely finish books in less than a week, and I finished this in about three days...that should serve as a testament to how much I enjoyed it!
I found this book to be simultaneously devastating and empowering and, above all else, immensely readable. This is not a memoir about fighting fire; it's a memoir about how fighting fire fits into a big, complicated life, and how this wild, intense and—at times—traumatic job kept River coming back against all odds. There's also just the right amount of ecological and historical context to provide the reader with a bit of a broader understanding of firefighting, fire ecology and Indigenous fire practices across North America.
As a former (female-identifying) wildland firefighter and hotshot, the thing I most loved about this book was that it validated so many of the complicated emotions I often felt working in fire, but which I didn’t have the language for until reading this book. I rarely finish books in less than a week, and I finished this in about three days...that should serve as a testament to how much I enjoyed it!
April 28, 2025
Hotshot is an upcoming nonfiction/memoir from author River Selby. This book is rich with information about the environmental complexities of fire suppression and the impact of human behavior on our landscapes. These themes of nature are woven between stories of Selby’s life as a female wildland firefighter.
This will sound stupid to say, but I think this book does a really good job at being what it is. It is both an intensely vulnerable memoir and a thorough resource on environmental science—in equal parts. I can think of a few different friends or coworkers who would find this memoir really interesting.
TW: eating disorders, sexual assault, suicide, substance abuse, mental illness, sexual content
As you can see from the list above, this book hits on several heavy topics that may not be suitable for all readers. I’m pretty unflinching when it comes to these things, and the only part I’m still looking for at the end of the book is some resolution on Selby’s experiences with those things. Maybe unbeknownst to the author, the reader is rooting for you!
River, I hope you’re doing well and thriving today. This book taught me more than I ever dreamed of learning about fire, nature’s response to it and the various local and government departments, agencies and programs that regulate our human interactions with the land.
This is a 5 ⭐️ read for me. Hotshot is available on August 12, 2025. Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for this ARC in exchange for me honest review.
#netgalley #netgalleyreview #hotshot #wildlandfirefighting #statepark #wildfire #memoir #book #bookreview #booksta #bookstagram #groveatlantic #ad #riverselby
This will sound stupid to say, but I think this book does a really good job at being what it is. It is both an intensely vulnerable memoir and a thorough resource on environmental science—in equal parts. I can think of a few different friends or coworkers who would find this memoir really interesting.
TW: eating disorders, sexual assault, suicide, substance abuse, mental illness, sexual content
As you can see from the list above, this book hits on several heavy topics that may not be suitable for all readers. I’m pretty unflinching when it comes to these things, and the only part I’m still looking for at the end of the book is some resolution on Selby’s experiences with those things. Maybe unbeknownst to the author, the reader is rooting for you!
River, I hope you’re doing well and thriving today. This book taught me more than I ever dreamed of learning about fire, nature’s response to it and the various local and government departments, agencies and programs that regulate our human interactions with the land.
This is a 5 ⭐️ read for me. Hotshot is available on August 12, 2025. Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for this ARC in exchange for me honest review.
#netgalley #netgalleyreview #hotshot #wildlandfirefighting #statepark #wildfire #memoir #book #bookreview #booksta #bookstagram #groveatlantic #ad #riverselby
July 14, 2025
Quick thoughts: Fascinating and informative.
HOTSHOT is a memoir by a woman who was a wildland firefighter, which is a largely male-dominated job. But that descriptor doesn’t even begin to tell you all this book entails. I learned so much!
Woven in with her personal experiences, we have broader stories of the indigenous tribes that once took care of the land now owned and managed by the government. We learn about the differences in how they used fire to clear land, as opposed to how we now use controlled fires. We get information on climate change and how this is changing the way wildfires burn.
River Selby has an engaging writing style. She shares some things that must have been difficult to write about, but the weight is never crushing for the reader. We feel the emotion and effects without being immersed in the darkness.
I have immense respect for the author and all she’s gone through to get where she is today. I hope we’ll be seeing more from her in the future!
*Thanks to Grove Atlantic for the free ARC!*
HOTSHOT is a memoir by a woman who was a wildland firefighter, which is a largely male-dominated job. But that descriptor doesn’t even begin to tell you all this book entails. I learned so much!
Woven in with her personal experiences, we have broader stories of the indigenous tribes that once took care of the land now owned and managed by the government. We learn about the differences in how they used fire to clear land, as opposed to how we now use controlled fires. We get information on climate change and how this is changing the way wildfires burn.
River Selby has an engaging writing style. She shares some things that must have been difficult to write about, but the weight is never crushing for the reader. We feel the emotion and effects without being immersed in the darkness.
I have immense respect for the author and all she’s gone through to get where she is today. I hope we’ll be seeing more from her in the future!
*Thanks to Grove Atlantic for the free ARC!*
September 4, 2025
Hotshot is one of those rare memoirs that manages to be blisteringly personal and urgently political at the same time. River Selby doesn’t just recount a decade of fire seasons; they pull the reader into the heart of the wildland, into the body-breaking, soul-forging labor of fighting fire, and into the complexities of being a female-bodied firefighter in a culture that both depended on and rejected them.
What makes this book unforgettable is its refusal to simplify. Selby’s story is one of survival, through addiction, violence, and homelessness, and of resilience forged in smoke and heat. But it’s also an unflinching examination of the costs of carving out space in a male-dominated world. The moments of camaraderie are real, but so too are the betrayals, the silence, the violence of exclusion. That duality, the love of the work and the grief of being pushed out, lingers long after the final page.
Equally powerful is the way Selby braids personal narrative with the larger ecological and historical context. Their reflections on fire science, Indigenous land stewardship, and the failures of federal fire policy ground the memoir in a much wider story, one not just about identity and belonging, but about how we as a society relate to fire itself.
Selby’s prose is visceral and lyrical, able to capture the crackling immediacy of a fire line, the exhaustion of endless labor, and the quiet ache of loss with equal force. It’s a book that left me humbled, angry, and strangely hopeful all at once.
Hotshot isn’t just a memoir of a life on fire, it’s a testament to resilience, a reckoning with power and erasure, and a necessary meditation on the land we live with and the flames that shape it.
What makes this book unforgettable is its refusal to simplify. Selby’s story is one of survival, through addiction, violence, and homelessness, and of resilience forged in smoke and heat. But it’s also an unflinching examination of the costs of carving out space in a male-dominated world. The moments of camaraderie are real, but so too are the betrayals, the silence, the violence of exclusion. That duality, the love of the work and the grief of being pushed out, lingers long after the final page.
Equally powerful is the way Selby braids personal narrative with the larger ecological and historical context. Their reflections on fire science, Indigenous land stewardship, and the failures of federal fire policy ground the memoir in a much wider story, one not just about identity and belonging, but about how we as a society relate to fire itself.
Selby’s prose is visceral and lyrical, able to capture the crackling immediacy of a fire line, the exhaustion of endless labor, and the quiet ache of loss with equal force. It’s a book that left me humbled, angry, and strangely hopeful all at once.
Hotshot isn’t just a memoir of a life on fire, it’s a testament to resilience, a reckoning with power and erasure, and a necessary meditation on the land we live with and the flames that shape it.
August 11, 2025
I highly recommend this book for those who care about the environment, reading personal experiences about the life of a wildlife firefighter and hotshot, or anyone who just wants a gripping and educational read! Selby's way of weaving between their current experiences while on the hotshot crews and their flashbacks of their life growing up was smooth and powerful. Their book is an excellent combination of personal story and experience, with public education on the history of our public lands and the various fire services. Thank you for covering the untold experience of so many female and non-binary firefighters from such a vulnerable place! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
September 5, 2025
Incredible. One of the greatest things I’ve read. Couldn’t put it down.
August 26, 2025
Thank you for that
September 1, 2025
Damn. If you read and enjoyed Fire Weather when it came out only two years ago, you need to read this. Selby is mostly talking about their own time on fires, which predates the blaze that's the center of Valiant's book, but they're also a current researcher in the field bringing to bear their understanding of fire in 2025 and so much has happened since 2023. This is one of those subjects where we're going to need another new book ever 15 months in order to stay on top of the science, written by people who can bring humanity to the experience as well as Valiant and Selby do.
I learned so much about fire and firefighting from this book, but it was also balanced against a particularly powerful personal story that taught me a lot about resilience and reminded me a lot about the barriers to access.
I'll be looking forward to what Selby does next and I look forward to hearing their voice again.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an audio ARC.
I learned so much about fire and firefighting from this book, but it was also balanced against a particularly powerful personal story that taught me a lot about resilience and reminded me a lot about the barriers to access.
I'll be looking forward to what Selby does next and I look forward to hearing their voice again.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an audio ARC.
August 21, 2025
This was a very interesting read. I expected it to be about River’s late adolescent years where they struggled with homelessness and drugs among other perils, but it mainly covered their years as Ana while she was a female firefighter (specifically a “hotshot”), and all the issues of wildland fires in general. I liked how the facts and history of wildland fire fighting were interspersed with her actual experiences. If you’ve wondered why it seems wildfires have been so much worse lately, this book will help explain a lot.
𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝑰'𝒅 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐:
Anyone curious about wildland fires, firefighting, or a female’s perspective in this male-dominated field.
𝑨 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏:
The author narrates this themselves and does a wonderful job! The audio was so great to listen to!
I don’t like to rate memoirs, but really thought this deserved 5 stars.
𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝑰'𝒅 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐:
Anyone curious about wildland fires, firefighting, or a female’s perspective in this male-dominated field.
𝑨 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏:
The author narrates this themselves and does a wonderful job! The audio was so great to listen to!
I don’t like to rate memoirs, but really thought this deserved 5 stars.
September 2, 2025
River is an incredibly talented human! This is their first book and I’m loving reading it. The perspectives shared about difficult topics in thoughtful ways are inspiring. It feels special to read a book that tackles difficult and challenging topics (being the only woman on a hotshot crew, wildfires, Indigenous traditional knowledge of fires, to name a few) and does so with humility and grace. Highly recommend this book because everyone can learn something from these stories and River, I think.
May 18, 2025
This is a beautiful book. The chapters unfold like snapshots from Selby's life - their experiences as a wildland firefighter as well as their personal experiences of trauma. Selby’s lovely prose is clear, concise, accessible, and evocative; I could easily picture the landscapes where they fought fires and could feel their sorrow and isolation as well as their determination and drive. Selby's description of their first experience fighting a fire had me on the edge of my seat, as if I was there.
Selby uses an economy of words to skillfully and sensitively describe their experiences of trauma and does so without sensationalizing or falling into gratuitous detail. As I read these sections, I felt a kinship and great empathy for what they endured and how they survived.
Selby intersperses these stories with a well-researched history of fire suppression in the United States, from indigenous practices that preserved the land to modern firefighting techniques and policies that damage forests and grasslands, making them even more vulnerable to fire.
I highly recommend this book and believe it would resonate with a wide range of readers.
Selby uses an economy of words to skillfully and sensitively describe their experiences of trauma and does so without sensationalizing or falling into gratuitous detail. As I read these sections, I felt a kinship and great empathy for what they endured and how they survived.
Selby intersperses these stories with a well-researched history of fire suppression in the United States, from indigenous practices that preserved the land to modern firefighting techniques and policies that damage forests and grasslands, making them even more vulnerable to fire.
I highly recommend this book and believe it would resonate with a wide range of readers.
September 2, 2025
❤️🔥 HOTSHOT does the thing I want most from a book: it looks at once at self and world, and asks hard questions about why everything is as it is. Selby weaves the colonial history of fire suppression in the United States with their experience doing rough work with rough men. In both spaces, we see how harms tendril out, reignite, and fail to hew to our common understandings of what is safe and what is dangerous.
From this book, a reader will learn much about indigenous burning practices and the widescale mismanagement of land in the name of America, as well as the particular indignities that come with performing labor that patriarchy has deemed not yours to do.
This book made me feel seen and known in a way that would have been intolerable to me when I was still doing my own rough work with rough men. Today I understand the telling of these and other disquieting truths to be the purpose of writing in the first place.
Highly recommend picking up a copy at your favorite local bookstore and keeping up with @riverselby—today and beyond—for more necessary words <3
From this book, a reader will learn much about indigenous burning practices and the widescale mismanagement of land in the name of America, as well as the particular indignities that come with performing labor that patriarchy has deemed not yours to do.
This book made me feel seen and known in a way that would have been intolerable to me when I was still doing my own rough work with rough men. Today I understand the telling of these and other disquieting truths to be the purpose of writing in the first place.
Highly recommend picking up a copy at your favorite local bookstore and keeping up with @riverselby—today and beyond—for more necessary words <3
August 31, 2025
Slow and some parts were difficult to stay focused on. A whole chapter on Mark Twain.
August 13, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic | Atlantic Monthly Press for the e-ARC.
This was a captivating, raw, emotional memoir of a wildland firefighter. It focuses on the years that River Selby was engaged in that profession, as well providing insight into their life and troubled family life that led them to that profession for nearly a decade in the early 2000s, as well as their struggles with mental health and bulimia. Along the way it explores the natural history of the American West and the way we have mismanaged the land (and fire) that now combined with climate change is leading to evermore destructive wildland fires. It further documents the rough life, low-waged aspect of this seasonal type of work, as well as the misogynistic culture they endured during their time in the service.
As the father of a firefighter/paramedic, I found the details of how wildland firefighters go about fighting fires fascinating.
River Selby's prose is engaging in a way that while you know they are now in a PhD program and have written this book, their is a bit of that "edge of the seat suspense" that has you rooting for them to succeed, and concerned they won't.
Finally, I not only appreciated the fact that they included a bibliography, but also a suggested further reading list.
I highly recommend this read!
This was a captivating, raw, emotional memoir of a wildland firefighter. It focuses on the years that River Selby was engaged in that profession, as well providing insight into their life and troubled family life that led them to that profession for nearly a decade in the early 2000s, as well as their struggles with mental health and bulimia. Along the way it explores the natural history of the American West and the way we have mismanaged the land (and fire) that now combined with climate change is leading to evermore destructive wildland fires. It further documents the rough life, low-waged aspect of this seasonal type of work, as well as the misogynistic culture they endured during their time in the service.
As the father of a firefighter/paramedic, I found the details of how wildland firefighters go about fighting fires fascinating.
River Selby's prose is engaging in a way that while you know they are now in a PhD program and have written this book, their is a bit of that "edge of the seat suspense" that has you rooting for them to succeed, and concerned they won't.
Finally, I not only appreciated the fact that they included a bibliography, but also a suggested further reading list.
I highly recommend this read!
August 14, 2025
Thanks to NetGalley and RB Media for the advanced audio book
River Selby (who went by Ana at the time) worked as a wildlife firefighter from 2000-2010, being only one of very few female firefighters in a male-dominated industry. Selby intersperses the history of wildlife firefighting with tales of their own harrowing backstory (disordered eating, sexual assault, parental alienation, substance abuse) and how they made it through working one of the most dangerous jobs.
The author reads this audiobook and I found Selby's voice very engaging and easy to listen to. But I struggled with getting through this book, even though the premise of following a female wildlife firefighter was very appealing. It wasn't because of the devastating things that Selby went through both on and off the job. In listening to memoirs that are also providing information about a topic I don't know much about, I like when the author weaves the history of the topic into their personal narrative. Selby did a lot more chunking of history about firefighting that, while interesting, didn't compare to the more active story of her life and I found myself wanting to skim over those parts, even though there was great material conveyed there as well. Overall, this is an interesting book about an occupation rarely written about and if the structure of the storytelling works for you, then this would be a great read.
Hotshot came out on August 12, 2025.
River Selby (who went by Ana at the time) worked as a wildlife firefighter from 2000-2010, being only one of very few female firefighters in a male-dominated industry. Selby intersperses the history of wildlife firefighting with tales of their own harrowing backstory (disordered eating, sexual assault, parental alienation, substance abuse) and how they made it through working one of the most dangerous jobs.
The author reads this audiobook and I found Selby's voice very engaging and easy to listen to. But I struggled with getting through this book, even though the premise of following a female wildlife firefighter was very appealing. It wasn't because of the devastating things that Selby went through both on and off the job. In listening to memoirs that are also providing information about a topic I don't know much about, I like when the author weaves the history of the topic into their personal narrative. Selby did a lot more chunking of history about firefighting that, while interesting, didn't compare to the more active story of her life and I found myself wanting to skim over those parts, even though there was great material conveyed there as well. Overall, this is an interesting book about an occupation rarely written about and if the structure of the storytelling works for you, then this would be a great read.
Hotshot came out on August 12, 2025.
September 3, 2025
Incredible, fantastic, well-researched book
August 20, 2025
Being a woman in a male dominated field, especially in wildland fire, and experiencing sexism and sexual comments… been there
Thank you River for so vulnerably painting a picture of how physically and mentally taxing the job can be while also ultimately shaping who you become as a person both on and off the fireline.
Thank you River for so vulnerably painting a picture of how physically and mentally taxing the job can be while also ultimately shaping who you become as a person both on and off the fireline.
August 12, 2025
A deeply engaging book - I couldn't put it down. River brings together so many stories and weaves them into one. Can't wait to read what they write next!
August 5, 2025
Book Review: Hotshot: A Life on Fire by River Selby
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ (4.5/5)
🙏 Thank you to Grove Atlantic for the ARC!
🔥 Initial Thoughts:
This is the kind of memoir that makes you want to pause between chapters just to sit with it. Gritty, powerful, and unexpectedly tender, Hotshot blew past all my expectations.
River Selby doesn't just recount the life of a wildland firefighter, they excavate it—layer by layer—until you’re standing beside them in the smoke, sweat, and ache of it all. This isn’t just a story about fire. It’s about identity, survival, land, trauma, and the systems we build (and burn) in the name of control.
💙 What I Loved:
• Personal trauma and systemic critique woven together with intention and care
• Intimate but never self-indulgent; emotionally heavy but never hopeless
• Rich historical context on fire suppression, Indigenous stewardship, and federal mismanagement
• Deep dive into how fire actually works on the land—fascinating ecological detail
• Brutal honesty about gender, power, and violence within fire crews
• Sharp writing with poetic clarity and unforgettable images
• The quote “Leaving was my answer to everything” still echoes in my brain
• That final reflection on healing, both personal and planetary, was genuinely moving
🤔 What Didn’t Work for Me:
• Occasionally shifts tone quickly between memoir and policy critique, some transitions felt abrupt
• Might be too dense or intense for readers expecting a “traditional” firefighter memoir
• Could have gone deeper into later identity shifts (that part felt a little rushed compared to the rest)
📚 TROPES / THEMES:
• Found purpose in chaos
• Woman in a male-dominated field
• Trauma survival and recovery
• Climate crisis and ecological grief
• Institutional sexism and accountability
• Memoir meets field research
• Grief, reinvention, and belonging
📌 Final Take:
Hotshot is equal parts memoir, manifesto, and meditation. If you’re into books that crack open complicated systems, from fire policy to gender norms, and make them personal, this one’s for you.
Selby writes like someone who has felt the heat from both the flames and the culture around them, and they don’t flinch from either. This is a book that honors the land, calls out injustice, and still finds space for healing and hope. One of the strongest memoirs I’ve read all year. Highly recommend.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ (4.5/5)
🙏 Thank you to Grove Atlantic for the ARC!
🔥 Initial Thoughts:
This is the kind of memoir that makes you want to pause between chapters just to sit with it. Gritty, powerful, and unexpectedly tender, Hotshot blew past all my expectations.
River Selby doesn't just recount the life of a wildland firefighter, they excavate it—layer by layer—until you’re standing beside them in the smoke, sweat, and ache of it all. This isn’t just a story about fire. It’s about identity, survival, land, trauma, and the systems we build (and burn) in the name of control.
💙 What I Loved:
• Personal trauma and systemic critique woven together with intention and care
• Intimate but never self-indulgent; emotionally heavy but never hopeless
• Rich historical context on fire suppression, Indigenous stewardship, and federal mismanagement
• Deep dive into how fire actually works on the land—fascinating ecological detail
• Brutal honesty about gender, power, and violence within fire crews
• Sharp writing with poetic clarity and unforgettable images
• The quote “Leaving was my answer to everything” still echoes in my brain
• That final reflection on healing, both personal and planetary, was genuinely moving
🤔 What Didn’t Work for Me:
• Occasionally shifts tone quickly between memoir and policy critique, some transitions felt abrupt
• Might be too dense or intense for readers expecting a “traditional” firefighter memoir
• Could have gone deeper into later identity shifts (that part felt a little rushed compared to the rest)
📚 TROPES / THEMES:
• Found purpose in chaos
• Woman in a male-dominated field
• Trauma survival and recovery
• Climate crisis and ecological grief
• Institutional sexism and accountability
• Memoir meets field research
• Grief, reinvention, and belonging
📌 Final Take:
Hotshot is equal parts memoir, manifesto, and meditation. If you’re into books that crack open complicated systems, from fire policy to gender norms, and make them personal, this one’s for you.
Selby writes like someone who has felt the heat from both the flames and the culture around them, and they don’t flinch from either. This is a book that honors the land, calls out injustice, and still finds space for healing and hope. One of the strongest memoirs I’ve read all year. Highly recommend.
July 22, 2025
From the secrets of wildland firefighting to Indigenous land management to persevering through sexist harassment, River Selby’s incredible memoir, Hotshot: A Life on Fire, takes us on a fascinating tour of the American West, the human body, and forest ecosystems.
I learned so much about wildland firefighting - who knew fire suppression involves so many intentionally lit fires! - and about the natural cycles of wildfires burning in a mosaic pattern so habitats can regrow.
Selby shares such vivid and gripping descriptions of working on the hotshot crews. I felt scared for them immersed in smoke, digging line through the forest, but impressed by their strength and tenacity.
Firefighting is such a visceral experience, not separate from the body at all. Selby had an eating disorder and struggled with body image, suffering through difficult working conditions made more challenging by coworkers’ unwarranted judgements.
Grief for what might have been is tenderly woven throughout the narrative. What might have been if Indigenous people had been encouraged to keep maintaining their homeland, rather than violently forced out. What might have been if women and men and trans and non-binary people were supported equally in their firefighting careers and in their relationships. And the overwhelming grief of family tragedy.
But this is not a sad book. This narrative is about regrowth and a researched, respectful, inclusive understanding of the ecosystems we all live in. I learned so much from Selby's experience.
This book changed my whole perspective on the forests and grasslands I have spent many months camping in. I highly recommend reading River Selby's memoir Hotshot!
I learned so much about wildland firefighting - who knew fire suppression involves so many intentionally lit fires! - and about the natural cycles of wildfires burning in a mosaic pattern so habitats can regrow.
Selby shares such vivid and gripping descriptions of working on the hotshot crews. I felt scared for them immersed in smoke, digging line through the forest, but impressed by their strength and tenacity.
Firefighting is such a visceral experience, not separate from the body at all. Selby had an eating disorder and struggled with body image, suffering through difficult working conditions made more challenging by coworkers’ unwarranted judgements.
Grief for what might have been is tenderly woven throughout the narrative. What might have been if Indigenous people had been encouraged to keep maintaining their homeland, rather than violently forced out. What might have been if women and men and trans and non-binary people were supported equally in their firefighting careers and in their relationships. And the overwhelming grief of family tragedy.
But this is not a sad book. This narrative is about regrowth and a researched, respectful, inclusive understanding of the ecosystems we all live in. I learned so much from Selby's experience.
This book changed my whole perspective on the forests and grasslands I have spent many months camping in. I highly recommend reading River Selby's memoir Hotshot!
August 12, 2025
Hotshot: A Life on Fire, memoir from a hotshot firefighter. This is set to publish 8/12/2025.
This story is told from River Selby, life as her given name (Anastasia, aka Ana) during their experience as a Hotshot.
I loved how honest and raw Ana's story was. Hard to read at times given Ana's backstory (trauma check TW) and life as a 'female firefighter'. Female tagged in this way with respect to Ana's story and the alignment of how one is viewed in this field. I too can relate with that end of things, given I fought fire for a 7 year stretch.
I found this story to be a mix of narrative memoir with a purpose driven dialogue to the issues at play in this world of fire. There are harsh undertones that are clearly labeled and upfront. The writing acts like a magnifying glass Ana doesn't shy away from what others may not bring to light.
I thoroughly enjoyed the pace of this story, bringing the firefighting jargin to 'common every day speak'. Also, in a way that really brought one into the story to highlight the demand of the job. Coming from a knowledge of understanding didn't really take away from this story but brought more of a 'knowing smile' to the story.
My heart breaks for the personnel story and hardship that Ana has had (and maybe still is) to go through in this life. It says so much that this story exists. I would address Ana and say, that you have a voice and it matters.
The writing is very easy speak and approachable with some great insight into how forest agencies came to be. The heartbreak of the land and the indigenous people. This story was well integrated with Ana's personal life and the points brought in really highlighted the story being told.
Thank you to Netgalley and RBmedia for this audiobook in exchange of my honest review.
This story is told from River Selby, life as her given name (Anastasia, aka Ana) during their experience as a Hotshot.
I loved how honest and raw Ana's story was. Hard to read at times given Ana's backstory (trauma check TW) and life as a 'female firefighter'. Female tagged in this way with respect to Ana's story and the alignment of how one is viewed in this field. I too can relate with that end of things, given I fought fire for a 7 year stretch.
I found this story to be a mix of narrative memoir with a purpose driven dialogue to the issues at play in this world of fire. There are harsh undertones that are clearly labeled and upfront. The writing acts like a magnifying glass Ana doesn't shy away from what others may not bring to light.
I thoroughly enjoyed the pace of this story, bringing the firefighting jargin to 'common every day speak'. Also, in a way that really brought one into the story to highlight the demand of the job. Coming from a knowledge of understanding didn't really take away from this story but brought more of a 'knowing smile' to the story.
My heart breaks for the personnel story and hardship that Ana has had (and maybe still is) to go through in this life. It says so much that this story exists. I would address Ana and say, that you have a voice and it matters.
The writing is very easy speak and approachable with some great insight into how forest agencies came to be. The heartbreak of the land and the indigenous people. This story was well integrated with Ana's personal life and the points brought in really highlighted the story being told.
Thank you to Netgalley and RBmedia for this audiobook in exchange of my honest review.
August 5, 2025
This may have been the exact moment I fell in love with being a hotshot. Burning was like entering an alternate dimension. My shirt was drenched but I hadn't noticed myself sweating. The drip torch became an extension of my arm, fire a liquid expelled by my body. There was no pain. I'd been totally focused, consumed like branches alchemized from solid to smoke. I was cleansed. (loc. 672*)
Selby fell into firefighting almost by accident—but it stuck, and what followed was years in and out of seasonal work, in the wild, on the fireline. Firefighting was (still is) an industry dominated by cis White men, and Selby did not fit the mold; sometimes it was possible to forget that and just be a firefighter, and sometimes the reminders came thick and fast that some of the people on the crew wanted a crew that was exclusively firemen.
I've said it before and expect I'll say it again in the not too distant future: in another life, I want to be a wildland firefighter. In the meantime, though, I'll just keep ploughing through memoir after memoir as they turn up. And what I'm learning from memoirs on the subject is this: Wildland firefighting has always been behind the times in the US; it has always focused on suppression despite centuries of evidence that some amount of fire can be a regeneration tool. And wildland firefighting is falling ever more behind the times as the effects of climate change accelerate and fires burn bigger and hotter than ever before. As Jordan Thomas does in When It All Burns, Selby dives into both past and present, excavating history to trace the path of firefighting, mismanagement, and inadequate stewardship.
Leaving was my answer to everything. (loc. 2401)
Though it is of course the same history, the tone of the books is strikingly different. While Thomas felt out of place at times for being an academic who took to firefighting as a side gig (for money and for research), once he proved himself, he was any other guy on the crew; for Selby, firefighting was a lifeline out of a traumatic upbringing, and there was never going to be the option to be "any other guy" on the crew. It's a painful read at times, but a raw and valuable one. Recommended to those interested in climate change, gender politics, fire, and/or more generally memoir.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.
*Quotes are from an ARC and may not be final.
Selby fell into firefighting almost by accident—but it stuck, and what followed was years in and out of seasonal work, in the wild, on the fireline. Firefighting was (still is) an industry dominated by cis White men, and Selby did not fit the mold; sometimes it was possible to forget that and just be a firefighter, and sometimes the reminders came thick and fast that some of the people on the crew wanted a crew that was exclusively firemen.
I've said it before and expect I'll say it again in the not too distant future: in another life, I want to be a wildland firefighter. In the meantime, though, I'll just keep ploughing through memoir after memoir as they turn up. And what I'm learning from memoirs on the subject is this: Wildland firefighting has always been behind the times in the US; it has always focused on suppression despite centuries of evidence that some amount of fire can be a regeneration tool. And wildland firefighting is falling ever more behind the times as the effects of climate change accelerate and fires burn bigger and hotter than ever before. As Jordan Thomas does in When It All Burns, Selby dives into both past and present, excavating history to trace the path of firefighting, mismanagement, and inadequate stewardship.
Leaving was my answer to everything. (loc. 2401)
Though it is of course the same history, the tone of the books is strikingly different. While Thomas felt out of place at times for being an academic who took to firefighting as a side gig (for money and for research), once he proved himself, he was any other guy on the crew; for Selby, firefighting was a lifeline out of a traumatic upbringing, and there was never going to be the option to be "any other guy" on the crew. It's a painful read at times, but a raw and valuable one. Recommended to those interested in climate change, gender politics, fire, and/or more generally memoir.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.
*Quotes are from an ARC and may not be final.
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September 10, 2025
wow 정말 감동적인 책입니다.im korean^^
연체자대출가능한곳 Please read it
연체자내구제 It's a touching book
무직자내구제 Recommended. Must see
당일내구제대출 tell me what you think.
무방문내구제대출 , 집에서 100% 비대면으로 신청 완료!
내구제대출 My friend read it and cried too.
통신사소액대출가능한곳 정말 감동적인 내용입니다.
당일내구제후기 한번은 꼭읽어야 할책
통신등급대출비상금대출 휴대폰개통대출 전국어디서나 100%
폰테크내구제후기 당일소액 내구제 가능한곳
당일내구제후기 내구제후기 글입니다.
내구제대출후기Thank you for telling me about a good book. I love it^^
연체자대출가능한곳 Please read it
연체자내구제 It's a touching book
무직자내구제 Recommended. Must see
당일내구제대출 tell me what you think.
무방문내구제대출 , 집에서 100% 비대면으로 신청 완료!
내구제대출 My friend read it and cried too.
통신사소액대출가능한곳 정말 감동적인 내용입니다.
당일내구제후기 한번은 꼭읽어야 할책
통신등급대출비상금대출 휴대폰개통대출 전국어디서나 100%
폰테크내구제후기 당일소액 내구제 가능한곳
당일내구제후기 내구제후기 글입니다.
내구제대출후기Thank you for telling me about a good book. I love it^^
August 24, 2025
You know, when I was a child, I had big dreams of becoming a firefighter. I was talked out of it by my parents who thought I would be best suited to retail or office work. That feeling never went away, even though I did indeed go into retail as a teen and then office administration when I left school.
River lived the dream, and went one better: becoming a hotshot.
This was a very honest account of her life when she was a wildland firefighter and a hotshot, a career path that was full of roadblocks, both big and small. It is also full of detail about what her job entailed, which I really appreciated as I eventually realised that I wouldn't have had the physical strength to become a firefighter, in all honesty, so my only option is to live vicariously through someone else. I did join the Army Reserve when I was 19, in an effort to challenge myself and it was amazing but not a good fit for me. That physical strength thing again, darn it.
Anyway, I enjoyed this book and hope that River is living her absolute best life now, she certainly deserves it.
4.5 stars from me.
Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic.
River lived the dream, and went one better: becoming a hotshot.
This was a very honest account of her life when she was a wildland firefighter and a hotshot, a career path that was full of roadblocks, both big and small. It is also full of detail about what her job entailed, which I really appreciated as I eventually realised that I wouldn't have had the physical strength to become a firefighter, in all honesty, so my only option is to live vicariously through someone else. I did join the Army Reserve when I was 19, in an effort to challenge myself and it was amazing but not a good fit for me. That physical strength thing again, darn it.
Anyway, I enjoyed this book and hope that River is living her absolute best life now, she certainly deserves it.
4.5 stars from me.
Thank you to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic.
April 25, 2025
What a brave, smart, beautiful book. Selby manages to weave together their years as a wildland firefighter with a comprehensive, well-researched fire and land use history —with a strong emphasis on indigenous wisdom. At the same time, like any good memoir, this is the story of Selby’s family of origin, most of all, her achingly painful relationship with her mother. As she (they/them now, but “she” in the book) grapples with the physical challenges, covert misogyny, and outright discrimination and harassment of working on hotshot crews in the early 2000’s, she must also fight the fires within: her eating disorder, history of self-destructive behavior, and need to heal from the wounds of a selfish and chaotic mother. As a former hotshot myself, so many of Selby’s experiences on the fire line resonated, and the historical/scientific sections were highly educational, but it was their personal story that kept drawing me back into this book. This is an important contribution to the growing contemporary canon of wildfire literature, but more than anything, it’s an excellent memoir.
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