(Paperback)
This novel portrays historical events experienced by an Alaska Native family over more than two centuries. Generations of teenagers adjust from subsistence living to invasion by Russian fur traders, the purchase by America, gold fever, WWII detention, huge earthquake, disastrous oil spill, and much more. Each chapter is a new adventure of a new generation.
Ch.1 HARVEST OF THE FUR SEALS, Attu Island in 1745
Ch. 2 ESCAPE, Aleutian Islands in 1770 Ch. 3 THE GOVERNOR'S DAUGHTER, Kodiak in 1794
Ch. 4 THE PRIEST, New Archangel, Russian America in 1834
Ch. 5 COMING OF AMERICA, Sitka in 1867
Ch. 6 GOLD NUGGETS, from Sitka to Nome in 1900
Ch. 7 RETURN, from Fairbanks to Seward in 1925
Ch. 8 EVACUATION, from St. Paul Island to a Southeast camp in 1942
Ch. 9 EARTHQUAKE, in Anchorage in 1964
Ch. 10 THE SPILL, in Valdez in 1989
Ch. 11 OLYMPIC GAMES, in Fairbanks in 2010
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July 20, 2009: I thoroughly enjoyed reading this carefully researched and accurate portrayal of Alaska from its earliest days to the present. The story is easy to follow through the progressing generations of a single family, showing how each generation experienced the events that shaped Alaska. It is written for school-aged children, but would be a worthy addition to any library and is good reading for anyone interested in Alaska's history.