{"product_id":"the-soft-exile-9798988269007","title":"The Soft Exile","description":"\u003cp\u003eWith the publication of his debut novel, The Soft Exile, writer\/musician Eric Kiefer ended a five-year, 12,000 mile exodus.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Word for word, it's not exactly what happened to me out there,\" Kiefer said of The Soft Exile. \"But it's about as close as you can get without becoming a confession. It's a novel for the expatriates within us all.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe fictional memoir draws heavily from his experience as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Gobi Desert region of Mongolia. During this time, Kiefer gathered the raw material and life experiences that would later become The Soft Exile.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe book chronicles an idealistic, young American's decision to join the Peace Corps after an aborted suicide attempt. He spends two years as a volunteer in the fabled lands of the Mongolian desert-steppe, searching for redemption and an alternative to modern American life. Along the way, he teaches English in a public school, constructs a low-powered radio station and tries his best to assimilate to his new world, all the while lusting for an answer to a question that will either doom or save everything: \"What is a good deed worth?\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Pancake Massacre Publishing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/24\/2023\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798988269007\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 262\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.61lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.25w x 0.55d","brand":"Eric Kiefer","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51495064338613,"sku":"9798988269007","price":12.74,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_4bd69c22-f449-4b3a-bf19-288dc06fbf50.jpg?v=1754973870","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-soft-exile-9798988269007","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}