When my first novel, The Snow Child, was published, people often asked me if I had done a lot of research during the writing process. In truth, I hadn’t. I discovered several retellings of the Russian Snegurotchka fairy tale, and at one point I interviewed an elderly man who had grown up in Alaska and …
The 2017 Pacific Northwest Book Awards Winners have been announced! A panel of nine booksellers from the region chose the winners from 325 nominations of books written by authors from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, or British Columbia. Here are the winners, with brief descriptions by the Award Committee: Thunder Boy, Jr. by Sherman Alexie (Seattle, WA) Alexie’s first …
If the land and people of Alaska beckon you, stop and take a close look at this memoir. Already read one of Kantner’s books? Then you know the treat you’re in with this one. If you haven’t, this one is a great one to begin with. Living above the Artic Circle, Kantner keeps the stories …
Kim Heacox has been awarded the the National Outdoor Book Award for Outdoor Literature (Fiction) for his novel, Jimmy Bluefeather. Heacox, a nature writer and photographer, was haunted for over a decade by a character that now lives in Jimmy Bluefeather. Old Keb “spoke to him”—wise and witty—about adventures, love, growing old, and reconciliation. A labor …
Jimmy Bluefeather, the new novel from award-winning writer, photographer, and conservationist Kim Heacox, is the first work of original adult fiction released by Alaska Northwest Books in fifty-six years of publishing. The collaborators recently got together to discuss their groundbreaking effort. AN: Alaska roots this novel and plays a large part in the overall story line. How does the …
Heather Lende has contributed essays and commentary to NPR, the New York Times, and National Geographic Traveler. A columnist for the Alaska Dispatch News, she writes obituaries for the Chilkat Valley News and is the author of Take Good Care of the Garden and the Dogs and the New York Times bestseller If You Lived …
Congratulations to Alaskan author Erin McKittrick! Her book, Small Feet, Big Land: Adventure, Home, and Family on the Edge of Alaska won the 2014 National Outdoor Book Award in the category of Outdoor Literature. Judges for the National Outdoor Book Awards come from all over the country. They grant awards in the categories of Outdoor …
While some of us boast about an arduous 7-mile hike along a well-traveled trail, Erin McKittrick and her husband, Hig, have trekked more than 7,000 miles of Alaska’s wilderness. By foot and by packraft, they travel around Alaska, both for their love of adventuring, but also on behalf of their nonprofit, Ground Truth Trekking. The …
