A HIKER'S GUIDE TO PURGATORY

A Hiker's Guide to PurgatoryA NovelBy Michael Norton A Hiker's Guide to Purgatory is Norton's first novel. One morning, attorney Dan Geary finds himself in the middle of a rolling, polychrome landscape. The greens are bold and bright. Birds sing in the distance. Tall grasses surge like a sea before the wind. He has never seen anything quite like it. But somehow—with the doctors and beeping monitors suddenly gone—he knows exactly where he is: the afterlife. What a relief not to be floating on a cloud, playing a harp. Instead, a hiking pack full of gear sits on his back, and he feels the familiar itch to start walking toward the far-off mountains. But he finds there is no trail, no map, no signage, and no one else in sight. As gorgeous as the scenery is, Dan feels in his bones: this is Purgatory. Growing up, he'd imagined Purgatory as a detention center for delinquent children. What a surprise to see its beauty, and to feel so much hope. Yet along the winding way, Dan starts recognizing