452 ratings | 98 reviews | avg rating:4.35

Wes’s Year In Books

Wes’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Wes’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

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Wes Blake’s Followers (64)

Wes’s Bookshelves

to-read (297)
currently-reading (2)
read (456)
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Wes’s Friends (100)

philosophie

4,863 books | 551 friends

Shannon

28,099 books | 275 friends

Luís

13,942 books | 2,991 friends

Krystal Moberly

701 books | 93 friends

Jessa

386 books | 31 friends

Hugo dos Santos

709 books | 188 friends

Vincent Scarpa

1,463 books | 539 friends

Kate

231 books | 8 friends

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2026 Reading Challenge

2026

READING

CHALLENGE

Wes Blake has read 8 of 30 books.

27%

Wes Blake

Goodreads Author

Born

in Lexington. KY, The United States

Website

https://wesblake.com/

Twitter

wesblake_

Genre

Fiction, Literary Fiction, Southern Fiction

Influences

Flannery O'Connor, Denis Johnson, Breece D'J Pancake, Louise Erdrich, ...more

Member Since

May 2011

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Wes Blake is the award-winning author of PINEVILLE TRACE (Etchings Press). His narrative nonfiction collection HAZELGREEN AND OTHER HAUNTS is forthcoming in 2027 from West Virginia University Press. Pulitzer Prize finalist author Lee Martin called him "a writer to watch" and Porchlight Southern Literature Journal named him one of "12 southern writers to read alongside the canon." His fiction and essays have appeared in Electric Literature, storySouth, and Untelling, among others. He is part of the visiting faculty at Eastern Kentucky University’s Bluegrass Writers Studio MFA in Creative Writing Program and lives in Kentucky. Learn more at wesblake.com and Instagram (@wesblake_). ...more

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Wes Blake’s books

Average rating: 3.58 · 212 ratings · 98 reviews · 1 distinct work • Similar authors

Pineville Trace

3.58 avg rating — 212 ratings — 3 editions

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Wes Blake's Blog

EDITOR'S PICK: Publishers Weekly BookLife named Pineville Trace an Editor's Pick!

So happy to share that Publishers Weekly #BookLife just named PINEVILLE TRACE an Editor’s Pick! They wrote such an insightful review, too. The review will appear in the Oct. 27 print edition of Publishers Weekly. I’m proud of this little book and thankful to Etchings Press and every person who’s helped support it along the way. Read the review, here: https://booklife.com/category/fiction...

Wes is Currently Reading

Wes Blake is currently reading

Nothing Short Of: Selected Tales from 100 Word Story.org

by Grant Faulkner (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Mar 30, 2026 11:24AM

Wes Blake is currently reading

What Are People For?

by Wendell Berry

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Apr 19, 2024 10:44AM

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Wes’s Recent Updates

Wes Blake rated a book it was amazing Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
What an incredible book. The Colonel is unforgettable. I l loved seeing Bill Houston before his journey in ANGELS. I’m hard pressed to find a better opening and ending. The dialogue is flawless. And some of Denis’ strongest sentences.
Jul 12, 2026 05:00PM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Wes Blake rated a book it was amazing Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 08, 2026 07:41PM · like
Wes Blake is currently reading Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 29, 2026 01:12PM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Wes Blake liked John’s status update John Ghaelian is currently reading The Hustler (Eddie Felson, #1)
May 20, 2026 07:53PM · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Hustler by Walter Tevis. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Hustler by Walter Tevis <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Wes Blake rated a book it was amazing The Caretaker by Ron Rash (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Expertly written character study of a polio-stricken cemetery caretaker who must find out who he is. Beautifully crafted sentences that capture the natural world and inner life melded with a page turning structure. Rash is one of the best living writ ...more
May 11, 2026 08:20PM · 3 likes · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Caretaker by Ron Rash. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Caretaker by Ron Rash <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Wes Blake rated a book it was amazing I Have Not Considered Consequences: Short Stories by Sherrie Flick	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 09, 2026 04:26PM · like
May 07, 2026 11:09AM · 1 like · like · view books
Wes Blake rated a book really liked it Above the Waterfall by Ron Rash (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 07, 2026 11:07AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Above the Waterfall by Ron Rash. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Above the Waterfall by Ron Rash <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Wes Blake rated a book really liked it Serena by Ron Rash (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 07, 2026 11:06AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Serena by Ron Rash. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Serena by Ron Rash <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Wes Blake wants to read The Risen by Ron Rash (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 07, 2026 11:06AM · like

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Topics Mentioning This Author

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Hooked on Books : Month RAT: July 2024	21	26	Aug 01, 2024 11:24AM
Hooked on Books : Jazzy's Best Part of Waking Up...	68	22	Sep 18, 2024 04:13PM
Hooked on Books : 2024 WBW: Sinker, Sailor, Soaker Spy book check in	146	38	Sep 19, 2024 07:59AM
Hooked on Books : Team Railroad Reading Raiders	527	72	Oct 03, 2024 03:29PM
Hooked on Books : HOB Olympic Games: Q ~ Ireland	120	27	Oct 29, 2024 04:27AM
Hooked on Books : The Name Game: Jazzy & Richard	395	65	Jun 12, 2025 02:29PM

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Wes’s Quotes

“You may my glories and my state depose,
But not my griefs; still am I king of those.”
― William Shakespeare, Richard II

92 likes

“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.”
― Joseph Addison

tags: mind, reading

902 likes

“If you are depressed you are living in the past.
If you are anxious you are living in the future.
If you are at peace you are living in the present.”
― Lao Tzu

tags: misattributed, misattributed-lao-tzu

2111 likes

“Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden or, Life in the Woods

tags: nature

1543 likes

“He was alone. He was unheeded, happy, and near to the wild heart of life. He was alone and young and wilful and wildhearted, alone amid a waste of wild air and brackish waters and the seaharvest of shells and tangle and veiled grey sunlight.”
― James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

245 likes

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Wes’s Year In Books

Wes Blake’s Followers (64)

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Wes’s Bookshelves

Wes’s Friends (100)

2026 Reading Challenge

Wes Blake

Goodreads Author

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Combine Editions
Wes Blake’s books

14 posts
Wes Blake's Blog

EDITOR'S PICK: Publishers Weekly BookLife named Pineville Trace an Editor's Pick!

Wes is Currently Reading

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Wes’s Recent Updates

See a Problem?

Preview — Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson

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Preview — Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson

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Preview — The Hustler by Walter Tevis

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Preview — The Caretaker by Ron Rash

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Wes’s Quotes

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Wes’s Groups

Wes’s Friend Comments

Wes Blake’s Followers (64)

Wes Blake

Goodreads Author

rssWes’s Recent Updates

See a Problem?

Preview — Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson

See a Problem?

Preview — Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson

See a Problem?

Preview — The Hustler by Walter Tevis

See a Problem?

Preview — The Caretaker by Ron Rash

See a Problem?

Preview — Above the Waterfall by Ron Rash

See a Problem?

Preview — Serena by Ron Rash

Topics Mentioning This Author

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Wes’s Recent Updates