Around 2003 Tom Kizzia, a newspaper reporter in Alaska, first spoke with Robert Hale, better known at that time as "Papa Pilgrim." Papa Pilgrim lived in the Alaska wilderness with his wife and 14 (or was it 15 by then?) children. He was having a property rights dispute with the National Park Service. Many, maybe most, locals sided with Papa Pilgrim and his enchanting family.

It is soon clear to the reader that Robert Hale was not the devout Christian and family man he proclaimed himself to be. He inflicted the worst kind of abuse on everyone in his family, even the youngest child, barely 2 years old. I found it difficult to read some of the descriptions. They were truly horrific.

But that was not clear to anyone outside the family at that time. They could only see Papa Pilgrim and his musical pilgrims, so quaint in their old-fashioned clothes.

Kizzia's nonfiction book about Papa Pilgrim and his pilgrims, PILGRIM'S WILDERNESS, tells their story and also gives some of Robert Hale's background in Texas and New Mexico. PILGRIM'S WILDERNESS shows how easily people can be fooled by outward appearances.

This book is a great piece of nonfiction. But here's where I think PILGRIM'S WILDERNESS might go wrong: it can be difficult for the reader to follow. This is surprising given that Kizzia was a newspaper reporter. Newspaper style aims to be simple and easy to read. But in this case the timeline seems to go back and forth haphazardly and is difficult to keep track of. Plus, when Kizzia begins to relate one incident, he often veers off to explain the history of another person or incident. It can be confusing. Probably PILGRIM'S WILDERNESS could have used an outline.