Last Stand

“Michael Punke’s meticulously researched Last Stand chronicles the transformation of the Great Plains from untouched wilderness in the mid-19th century to a land, less than 30 years later, where the future of wildlife hung in the balance.” – Audubon (Editors’ Choice)

“Last Stand is the engrossing story of a remarkable man in a remarkable place and time. Punke brings George Bird Grinnell’s vibrant life into full view. … Last Stand marks Punke as a first-class interpreter and story teller of this history.” – Curt Freese, Managing Director of the Northern Great Plains Program, World Wildlife Fund

“We historians have for so long needed a biography of conservation giant George Bird Grinnell. Michael Punke has provided it, including little known exploits that were so important to Yellowstone National Park. I rejoice in the pleasure of Punke having filled so very large a void.” – Lee Whittlesey, Yellowstone Park Historian, National Park Service

“Last Stand is all that western history should be. … Fascinating.”.” – Alan K. Simpson, Former U.S. Senator from Wyoming

Michael Punke lives with his family in Montana. A former partner in a Washington law firm, his diverse professional experience includes work on the White House National Security Council and on Capitol Hill. Punke is the history correspondent for Montana Quarterly magazine and is the author of a novel, The Revenant, about the adventures of a nineteenth-century frontiersman. Punke is also the author of a work of nonfiction, Fire and Brimstone: The North Butte Mining Disaster of 1917, a finalist for the Mountains and Plains Booksellers Award.