Welcome to the Goddamn Ice Cube

Ich habe die Leseprobe heruntergeladen, weil die Schlittenhundefotos von Blair Braverman bei Twitter sehr lustig sind. Überraschenderweise ist es gar kein Buch über Hunde, sondern eigentlich eines über alte Männer in Norwegen. Ich mochte vor allem den kompetenten, sparsamen Erzählstil, in diesem Stil bin ich bereit, beliebig viel über beliebige Themen zu lesen. Außerdem finde ich sehr gut, was hier alles weggelassen wird. Andere hätten halbe Kapitel über das Schlafen in Schneelöchern oder die Schönheit des Nordlichts geschrieben, hier nichts dergleichen, eine kurze Erwähnung, das war's.

Interesting memoir about time spent north of the arctic circle.

The emotions in this book are so saturating, so invasive, that I could not finish. It's well written - lyrical if not exact, punchy with resonating moments that anyone who has been dismissed, oggled, pursued against their wishes. If you are looking for a book about becoming, this one is for you. It was just too much for me.

I was hoping for more about dogs and cold weather survival - the book description is all about ice caves and sled dog police persuit escapaes - but the heart of this one is about a person spending her life undoing the damage done to her when she was young, being damaged again, healed again, damaged again in the pursuit of becoming what she wants to be.

This one was on my reading list for a while, and I’m so glad I finally read it. Braverman is a wonderful storyteller, writing of her time in Norway at a folk school, mushing dogs for tourists on a glacier in Alaska, and coming back to Norway to live and work for a time. Much of the book revolves around a need to prove herself—against the wilderness, against the men she encounters, and against the fear holding her back. It’s not terribly fast-paced, but it is certainly thought-provoking.

Wow, what an entertaining read! Blair has an unusual attraction for the north, esp. for a girl living in California. She had lived for a couple of years in Norway and couldn't shake the attraction, so she applied for a year at a "folk school" back in Norway and learned how to dog sled!

The book follows her adventures afterwards in Alaska and then back in Norway. It's all a fascinating story. She accurately and honestly portrays her insecurities and doubts. Which makes it all the more amazing is that she doesn't think she is very courageous, although what else could you call it to leave high school for a year learning how to drive a team of dogs in Norway!

Great stuff.