Not Really an Alaskan Mountain Man by Doug Fine

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Reporter Doug Fine has filed stories from Uzbekistan and Rwanda, but nothing in his journalistic experience prepared him for the great Alaskan outback. Not Really an Alaskan Mountain Man is the hilarious, self-deprecating confession of an East Coast big-city guy's misadventures in the fabulous land of frostbite.

From the Publisher

Now here's a formula for near disaster: East Coast big-city guy, world-traveler, jounalist, and otherwise politically savvy fellow settles down in rural Alaska, where men are many and manly, and women with survival skills are good to count among your friends. He wants to fit in. But how does one learn to be a Mountain Man? By observing, imitating, and making near-fatal mistakes, that's how. The choices a boy has to make. Eat processed food or on-the-hoof food, learn to operate a chainsaw or freeze to death, figure out what a bunny boot is or lose a few toes, and by the way, which end of he barrel points up? This is the story of Doug's first difficult winter in a one-room cabin, trying to stay alive and come out of it with some semblance of Alaska cool. With side-splitting, self-depreciating humor, Doug shares his attempts to elevate himself past his perpetual state of greenhorn-ness by aligning himself with tough sourdoughs to someday claim the title of manly Mountain Man.

Library Journal

Fine, a freelance journalist and a contributor of audio postcards to NPR's All Things Considered, writes about his first-year experiences as a Cheechako (tenderfoot) in the Fritz Creek region of Alaska. These experiences include operating a chain saw, surviving an overnight excursion via water taxi during winter, participating in a spring whale harvest near the Arctic Circle, using a shotgun, and helping a neighbor rebuild a house. Fine's interactions with the people he encounters while trying to fit into his new surroundings are lighthearted and should keep most readers' interest, though some may find his self-deprecating humor tedious. Not for those seeking practical information on living in Alaska, this work may satisfy the armchair traveler. Recommended for libraries with large travel collections and an optional purchase for all others.-John McCormick, Plymouth State Univ., NH Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Product Details

• Table of Contents

Table of Contents