Leah Sottile

@leahsottile.bsky.social

14573 Followers 487 Following

Independent journalist | Co-founder @thewesternedge.bsky.social Books: Blazing Eye Sees All, When The Moon Turns To Blood. Podcasts: Hush, Burn Wild, Two Minutes Past Nine, Bundyville. www.leahsottile.com

A screenshot from a police report reading "Man sitting in the street trying to start a pickup... has been trying so long... she can smell gas... she thinks he must be on drugs or drunk ... cause he keeps on churning and churning... proud mary keep on burning... rollin rollin... rollin on the river ... dat dat dat dat dum dum dum."
Promotional poster for a discussion of Matthew Wolfe’s book Fires in the Night between the author and Leah Sottile, Wednesday July 1 at 7 pm. Image features the cover of the book, which depicts a ski resort on fire.
A video of Leah Sottile and Ryan Haas discussing Ammon Bundy's political relevance ten years after the Malheur occupation, on the podcast Notes from the Edge
A screenshot from the app Libby documenting that I am 1800th in line for the audiobook of Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
"“People come to Portland to eat. People come for our restaurants. They spend money on shopping and hotels. They come for my foie gras profiteroles. …When you’re in the news for making it legal to smoke crack on our sidewalks, you might want to think twice about making duck liver illegal.” —Gabriel Rucker, chef-owner of Le Pigeon and Canard"
Leah Sottile stands at a podium reading a speech accepting the Oregon Book Award for General Nonfiction for her book Blazing Eye Sees All. The book cover is projected on a screen behind her.
Clip from NYT reading Federal agents accused two people in Minnesota of biting agents' fingers on Saturday during the protests that followed the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti. Newly unsealed criminal complaints accused Claire Feng of biting off part of the tip of a Customs and Border Protection officer's finger, and Emily Baierl of biting the finger of a Border Patrol agent. They made initial court appearances yesterday, records show.
Screenshot reading “13. Before using the word ‘unprecedented,’ interview a historian.”
A wall of several books marked “bestsellers - best books of 2025” at a Hudson Booksellers airport location, featuring Blazing Eye Sees All by Leah Sottile
A screenshot from Substack that reads Leah Sottile is now #10 Rising in News
Logo for Hush podcast, featuring a photo of Sarah Zuber
A poster advertising book tour dates from Oct 6-9 in Montana featuring author Leah Sottile discussing her book Blazing Eye Sees All
A screenshot of Oregon Republican Christine Drazan’s Facebook page from 9/27/25
A beautiful forested trail in Portland’s Forest Park
Fred Wherry, Leah Sottile and David Baron on stage at the Library of Congress National Book Festival
A screenshot of a NYT restaurant review from August 2025 that still is talking about June 2020
A screenshot of a story published in High Country News discussing the long legacy of far right extremism in Western Washington state. These paragraphs read: “Perhaps no one embodies that shift more than Lewis County Commissioner Sean Swope. In 2021, he criticized gender pronouns during a commissioner’s meeting. “If I’m a man I can identify as a woman. Or I can identify as a goat. Or something else,” he said. Later, in a discussion of LGBTQ materials in a local library, the Chronicle reported Swope had posted on Facebook and mentioned “groomers” — a term the far right uses to demonize LGBTQ people, according to the ADL. During a 2022 land-use rezoning discussion over a proposed local YMCA camp, Swope turned the discussion toward critical race theory, defunding police and gender reassignment. (Swope did not reply to multiple requests for comment.)”
A poster publicizing four book tour dates in Montana for Leah Sottile’s Blazing Eye Sees All from October 6-9. There is a photo of Sottile, the book jacket as well as a rainbow.
A screenshot of a story written by Bill Morlin in the Spokesman-Review on December 29, 1996 titled "World apart," featuring reporting on Elohim City
A paragraph from Alex Duggan's story about CDA shooter Wess Roley's lack of connection to the Aryan Nations.
A black and white photograph of Guy and Edna Ballard, and their son Donald. Guy stands on the right wearing all white, and a cape. Edna is in the center, carrying a big bouquet. Donald smiles off to the right.
A screenshot of a laughable paragraph from the Washington Post's profile of Jess Walter
Pride flags lining Capitol Blvd in Boise, Idaho
A poster for the Campfire Stories series at the Modern Hotel
A screenshot from an Anna Merlan piece for Flaming Hydra, in which she describes the term "Cletus Safari."
A screenshot of New Release in Occult Cults & Demonism on Amazon's Hot New Releases List, featuring Blazing Eye Sees All at #1.
The scary lady with smeared lipstick from Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun" video
A black and white drawing of a creepy wide eyed, big headed alien person saint hybrid, revered by the I AM Activity.
Leah Sottile speaks into a microphone to journalist Emma Epperly in front of a screen featuring a giant eye and the title of Sottile's book, Blazing Eye Sees All
A chalkboard at Auntie's Bookstore and a wall display of books by Leah Sottile.
Leah Sottile and Toastie Oaster speak to an audience at Powell's Bookstore
A hardcover book, Blazing Eye Sees All, by Leah Sottile, sitting on a counter.
A promo photo of the Cybertruck, with all the doors open and all their camping crap strewn everywhere, undoubtedly leaving traces of their shit all over the place.
A promotional image featuring Leah Sottile, B. Toastie Oaster and the book cover of Blazing Eye Sees All. Sottile and Oaster will be in conversation at Powell's City of Books on Thursday, March 27 at 7 pm.
Donald Trump onstage at a rally in Las Vegas on Saturday Jan 25. On the stage behind him, Cliven Bundy and Ryan Bundy hold their cowboy hats aloft. Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes holds up his phone. Many people smile.
A damn fine cherry pie sitting on a rack, waiting to be devoured.
Gary Larson 1984 Far Side Comic depicts people floating in a ship and people riding in a car with the labels "Ship of Fools" and "Car of Idiots"