The Stranger in the Woods

Michael Finkel becomes interested in the Knight story after seeing it on his cellphone feed. He is close to Knight in age and enjoys being alone as a writer and outdoorsman, but the birth of his three children causes an imbalance in his solitary time that, at one point, drives him to take a silent retreat in India. While Finkel can’t handle the strict regimen, he sees the power of silence to unlock deep, sometimes unsettling thoughts. Not only could Knight have experienced that sensation, but he was also an avid reader whose stolen library includes science fiction, Harlequin romances, and classics like Ulysses and Robinson Crusoe.

The case disappears from the news cycle. Desperate to learn more, Finkel sends a letter and several article clippings to the inmate. Knight gives a 273-word response that is both blunt and apologetic: He begins with a droll “Received your letter, obviously” (29) and criticizes Finkel’s interest in Ernest Hemingway, but worries about his handwriting with the rubber prison pen and potential rudeness.

Finkel sends him several books and a longer letter describing his family, a camping trip in the Montana wilderness during the recent supermoon, and the professional setbacks he suffered after creating a composite character for a news story.