Defined: “Modern-Day Thoreau”

Critically acclaimed author Wade Rouse returns with his third memoir

Known for his memorable account of growing up gay in the Missouri Ozarks, the critically acclaimed author Wade Rouse returns with his third memoir, At Least in the City Someone Would Hear Me Scream (Harmony Books, $23.99), this time reflecting on his transition back to rural life. Realizing he hadn’t accomplished his dream of becoming a full-time writer, the seasoned urbanite says goodbye to distractions such as cable TV and Starbucks on every corner, and moves with his partner, Gary, to the woods outside of Saugatuck, Michigan. The result: frantic attempts to adjust to the outdoors, such as using lip-gloss and breath freshener spray to fight off a manic raccoon. Says Rouse, a Northwestern University graduate: “You flail around for a while when you’re left to your own devices. I wigged out for a couple of months.”

This article appears in the July 2009 issue of Chicago Magazine.

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