New Alaska Books

Walled-in : Arctic housing and a sociology of walls

Lisa-Jo K. van den Scott ; foreword by Patsy Kowtak Kuksuk
2024
ISBN: 9781666959895

"In this ethnography of the contemporary lived experience of Inuit in Arviat, Nunavut, van den Scott examines the relationship between colonialism and the built environment. As she introduces a sociology of walls, she acknowledges how people in Arviat are both oppressed by their Western walls and perform resilience within them"-- Provided by publisher.

Alaska Native Resilience : Voices from World War II

Holly Miowak Guise
2024
ISBN: 9780295752525

The US government justified its World War II occupation of Alaska as a defense against Japan's invasion of the Aleutian Islands, but it equally served to advance colonial expansion in relation to the geographically and culturally diverse Indigenous communities affected. Offering important Alaska Native experiences of this history, Holly Miowak Guise draws on a wealth of oral histories and interviews with Indigenous elders to explore the multidimensional relationship between Alaska Natives and the US military during the Pacific War. The forced relocation and internment of Unangax^ in 1942 proved a harbinger of Indigenous loss and suffering in World War II Alaska. Violence against Native women, assimilation and Jim Crow segregation, and discrimination against Native servicemen followed the colonial blueprint. Yet Alaska Native peoples took steps to enact their sovereignty and restore equilibrium to their lives by resisting violence and disrupting attempts at US control. Their subversive actions altered the colonial structures imposed upon them by maintaining Indigenous spaces and asserting sovereignty over their homelands. A multifaceted challenge to conventional histories, Alaska Native Resilience shares the experiences of Indigenous peoples from across Alaska to reveal long-overlooked demonstrations of Native opposition to colonialism.

The awe of the Arctic : a visual history

edited by Elizabeth Cronin ; with a foreword by Brent Reidy and essays by Elizabeth Cronin, Elizabeth C. Denlinger, Ian Fowler, Julie Golia, Bogdan Horbal, Jessica Keister, Declan Kiely, Maggie Mustard, Dalila Scruggs, Kyle R. Triplett, Madeleine C. Viljoen, Joseph J. Vissers, Emily Walz
2024
ISBN: 9783775748070

"A co-publication with The New York Public Library on the occasion of its 2024 exhibition The Awe of the Arctic, this richly illustrated catalogue with its groundbreaking scholarship is the first to survey five hundred years of Arctic imagery. The presentation ranges from sixteenth-century explorers who attempted to capture the perceived strangeness of a remote region to contemporary artists whose work conveys the human impact on its changing climate and landscape. Collectively, the essays explore a trove of books, prints, photographs, maps, and artifacts depicting and representing the various nationalities and cultures that have shaped our understanding of the polar north and the peoples for whom it is home."-- Provided by publisher.

The Queen of Fairbanks : Extraordinary Family Secrets & Untold Stories of America's Farthest North

Phyllis Demuth Movius
2024
ISBN: 9780965767613

Born in an Alaska boomtown in 1911, Irene Sherman was the self-proclaimed Queen of Fairbanks. For decades, she roamed town in layers of clothing, loudly hailing passersby and scaring a few kids. Burn Scars spoke of long-ago tragedy and unthinkable pain. With digging, Tricia Brown discovered negligent parents, a horrific cabin fire, lost siblings... and a city with rare love for its rugged bag lady. They cheered her in parades, toasted her birthdays, and quietly guaranteed her independent lifestyle. Some may have viewed Irene as a pathetic street figure, but Brown dogged research transforms her into a living, breathing piece of history -- a study in survival and an inspiring tribute to Alaska's pioneer spirit. -- Back cover.

Alaska

by Dennis Paulson and Les Beletsky ; illustrated by David Dennis, Linda Feltner, John Myers, Colin Newman, John Sill ; habitat photography by Dennis Paulson, Richard Droker, and Carol Spaw
2024
ISBN: 9781623716981

"Alaska has both vast wilderness tracts and a modern transportation system, making eco-travelling in the state easy as well as exciting"--Back cover.

The sociality of indigenous dance in Alaska : happiness, tradition, and environment among Yupik on St. Lawrence Island and Iñupiat in Utqiaġvik

Hiroko Ikuta
2022
ISBN: 9780367641733

"This book explores indigenous dances and social relationships surrounding the dance activities among Yupik on St. Lawrence Island and Iñupiat in Utqiaġvik, Northern Alaska. Yupik and Iñupiat proudly distinguish their indigenous styles of dance, locally called 'Eskimo dance', from Western styles of dance, such as ballroom, disco or ballet. Based on two years of intensive fieldwork and 18 years of experience living in Alaska, Ikuta sets out to understand how Yupik and Iñupiaq dances are at the centre of social relationships with the environment, among humans, between humans and animals, and between Native and the Euro-American societies. It also examines how the nature and structure of dance are connected to cultural politics, wrought by political, economic and historical events"-- Provided by publisher.

Broken Pieces Exposed in the Light

Patricia G. Godfrey
2023
ISBN: 9798887939971

"From only a few feet away, my attacker fired her large caliber handgun directly at me. Round after round struck my body as I began praying even more fervently than I already had been. She had broken into my home and laid in wait for Glenn and me to return home from a family outing. She had already delivered two rounds into Glenn downstairs before rushing upstairs to kill me. But as I prayed, God's strength welled-up inside me and I walked away from her as she yelled at me to stop. I grabbed the phone and called 911. Turning to see where she was, I saw her look in my direction...but not at me. She saw something behind me. The look on her face suggested she saw a manifestation of a mighty angel that God had sent to protect me. She retreated from the room and returned downstairs to kill Glenn with one final shot before ending her own life. I was safe, but my battle was just beginning. As the wife of a 32-year Alaska State Trooper, and the mother of four children, I had always served our household in a support role during Glenn's long and illustrious career. But his position and frequent travels exposed this small-town boy to temptations greater than he could resist. Soon infidelity plagued our relationship for many years, culminating in that fateful August morning. This survival story is not a testament to anything other than God's goodness and faithfulness. Through my own suffering God can speak to others who have experienced physical or psychological trauma. I pray that this story brings you comfort and draws you closer to our Father, who loves you and has plans to prosper your soul. - Back cover

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