Thor Hanson's Blog

Thor will join Kira Jane Buxton, Jonathan Evison, Molly Hashimoto, Lynda V. Mapes, Garth Stein, Kevin O'Brien, Matt Kracht, and a large cast of other Pacific Northwest authors for Seattle's annual Holiday Bookfest, from 2 - 4 pm on Saturday, November 22nd at the Phinney Center (6532 Phinney Avenue N., Seattle, WA).  Don't miss it!

  

Thor recently filmed a short video for the folks at Less Lawn, More Life, a campaign to boost backyard biodiversity in yards across America.  It's a perfect fit for the message at the hear of Thor's latest book, Close to Home.  Click here to join the free Less Lawn, More Life challenge, and watch Thor's video, Observe and TUNE IN!

THE ESCAPE ARTIST is now on sale!  Follow Inky's real life adventure as he escapes from The National Aquarium of New Zealand, illustrated by the wonderful artwork of Galia Bernstein .  Published by the Greenwillow imprint at Harper Collins , the book has received starred reviews from Publisher's Weekly and Kirkus , and is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection.

Thor joined paleontologist Mairin Balisi and entomologist Samuel Ramsey to discuss "The Innovation of Animals" at the 2025 Aspen Ideas Festival, and spotted a pair of 'innovative' house wrens nesting in the roof above the audience's heads!  The session was moderated by Science editor-in-chief, Holden Thorp, and can be viewed in full here, or on YouTube.

This recent episode of C-SPAN's popular BOOK TV program features Thor reading from his latest work, Close to Home.  Filmed at Town Hall Seattle, the presentation includes pictures and stories from the book, as well as questions from the audience.  Click here to stream the full episode anytime on C-SPAN. 

 

 
 

 Look for Thor at two literary events in late June. He will be on the faculty and giving a plenary session about storytelling at the Chuckanut Writers Conference in Bellingham, WA from June 26-28, and he will be speaking about "The Innovation of Animals" at The Aspen Ideas Festival in Aspen, CO, on June 30th. Registration for both events is open and ongoing. Click here to register for Chuckanut Writers, and here to register for Aspen Ideas.

The latest issue of NOEMA Magazine features Thor's essay " The Neglected Abundance of Your Back Yard ," adapted from his latest book, Close to Home .  Read the essay online here, and learn more about NOEMA here.

The latest issue of NOEMA Magazine features Thor's essay " The Neglected Abundance of Your Back Yard ," adapted from his latest book, Close to Home .  Read the essay online here, and learn more about NOEMA here.

Thor's new children's book, The Escape Artist , hits the stores on July 22!  Available for pre-order now, it tells the true story of Inky, an octopus that escaped from the National Aquarium of New Zealand.  The book features gorgeous artwork by the brilliant Galia Bernstein , and has already received a starred review from Publisher's Weekly !

 

Three days only!  From April 23-25th, Barnes and Noble is offering a 25% discount on pre-orders of Thor's next children's book, The Escape Artist .  Use promo code PREORDER25 at checkout.