Krishna
Do you want to learn about Alaska? Are you also one who is bored with the dry, pedantic style of writing in many of the history books? Then this is the book for you. It is a work of fiction based on historical fact, and, unlike other historical fictions, this one follows the entire story of Alaska from the times the land mass was adrift billions of years ago to 1990’s when the book was written. If you have read James Michener books already, this is all old hat for you of course. His specialty is to take an area and then explore the entire history of the place across a vast time frame and do this from the point of view of many generations of a few families who live through the tumultuous events that occurred in that place.
It is a good read, and an interesting approach to describing historical events, in that it personalizes the event by `following the progress of a family’ which participates in the event. Purists may frown at mixing fiction with history this way, but it does bring alive the periods of mammoths, the exploitation of natives, the greed of the seal hunters and the conflicts that existed at every period from the rulers to the ruled. The characters of Missy Peckam, Tom Venn, and a hundred others help personalize the history of the land and make it come alive.
In fact, in the entire series of similar books James Michener has written, this is probably one of the best.
The football that Alaska became in the negotiations between Russia and US when Russia was trying to ‘palm off’ Alaska to
a very reluctant America makes for a fascinating read.
An interesting book indeed!
I would say, a 7/10
—Krishna