David Backes

David J. Backes writes and speaks about nature and the human spirit, with a goal of spreading hope during a time of growing anxiety and suffering. After six nonfiction titles, he is turning to fiction.

His influences include a diverse collection of writers from spiritual, ecological, and social justice fields, but insights from the holistic and hopeful works of famed naturalist/wilderness preservationist Sigurd F. Olson run through David Backes’ writings.

David’s book “A Wilderness Within: The Life of Sigurd F. Olson” won the national Small Press Book Award for biography. He has followed that book with three collections of Olson’s work: “The Meaning of Wilderness: Essential Articles and Speeches;” “Spirit of the North: The Quotable Sigurd F. Olson,” and “A Private Wilderness: The Journals of Sigurd F. Olson” (forthcoming 2021). All four of these are published by the University of Minnesota Press.

Earlier books include “Canoe Country: An Embattled Wilderness,” and “The Wilderness Companion.”