Reviews and Comments

This is a wonderful memoir.  Written by an amazing athlete, the life story reflects dedication to craft.  I enjoyed the clear explanations of competion (games in high school, college, NBA, Olympic games) although I am not a frequent watcher of basketball.  And, just as we in Juneau (his hometown high school) learned, Carlos is a person aiming for the best and appreciating the help others offer him (his father, his teammates,  Coach K, Kobe).      

Wonderfully descriptive of Kachemak Bay, Alaska.  Author writes from experience and study.  The gentle consideration of her own life, recent policies, and stories from history result in an honest appraisal of the world as it is, frequently changing.

Cast of characters is wide and detailed - I loved being immersed in what hula or dance or kalo cultivation can be.  

Detailed stories about glaciers and people in the past and present along the southern coast of Iceland.  Made a great read after Julie Cruikshankʼs Do Glaciers Listen? with stories in Canada, just north of where I live.  I will mull her point that there are many more beliefs, data points, and stories than just "the melting glaciers will hurt people".  

Fiercely independent women, just after World War 2 in London.  Historical details are abundant, including recognizing real silk stockings and doing without Scottish whiskey.  "The Right Sort Marriage Bureau" is their business, they get drawn into a murder mystery, and they grapple with righting themselves after the war, dealing with regrets and grief while trying to imagine the world to come.   Recommended by Dana Stabenow (who knows how to tell stories of strong women herself) and my copy has a blurb from Cara Black (she who writes about Aimee Leduc in Paris) 

Singapore

another lovely read

Delightful, inspires us to quiet community building - so glad the next volume is out

wonderful historical (some liberties taken -see notes at end of book) fiction about adventurous girls    The puzzles are good, the personalities distinct, and the focus is on doing (not being friends or good enough).  

This is a memoir written by a caring, reflective person.  Itʼs a wonderful text with details of surviving and even thriving on the tundra and along the rivers.  (My time in one of the villages overlaps some of the authorʼs moe extensive travels, visits, and learnings).   

A review of the news (particularly political) in the year 2020 - it was amazing to read of the episodes I know I lived through.  Excellent writing and I intend to read it again in 5 years.

as one expects this second volume is grim.  Partway through I wondered if any one of the power-hungry could be trusted.  The political shenanigans among immortals with hidden histories are complicated.  The ending gave me a glimmer of hope that the good-hearted youth may be able to reduce the cruelty in their world.

important reading.  The author focuses on the glaciated and newly exposed land from Icy Bay across the Alsek and to Lynn Canal by comparing stories, journals, published articles, and accepted scholarship.  She wants us to hear the different stories, not assuming one version is better or more complete than another.

a Trooper assigned to the village he was adopted from; his boss the former Chief broken in rank; the tundra, the wisdom, the pain,    EXCELLENT  Iʼll be reading more about Nathan Active (and lucky for me there are 7 so far!)