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Summary: Halifax is where It's At
Review: Ordinarily when I see a book with tiny printing like this one, I usually back off or end up putting the book down forever halfway through. This book sat on my bedside table and every night, I relished my next installment of Alvah, Diane, and Halifax's arctic adventure. It's clear to me after reading this that they all were accompanied by their "spirit protector" and survived extraordinary challenges to the mind, body, and spirit. I congratulate, admire, and envy them and their magnificient adventure. I very much think, however, that my rapt attention to this book had alot to do with the fact that Halifax came along for the ride. Being a cat lover, I was once again astounded at the capabilities of these wonderful, personable creatures. I really identified with Alvah's relationship with Halifax. Cats are glorious little creatures and I now am in the Halifax fan club. I wonder if Alvah and Diane have Halifax posters for people like me? Ha Ha! For those who enjoyed Into Thin Air or who enjoy Redmond O'Hanlon adventures, you will enjoy this book as well.
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Summary: Increadible story, impecibly written
Review: North to the Night is one of the most well-written seamanship stories in print today. It's elements of geogrpahy, spritiuality, history, and reality, combined with an author's Pulitzeresque style and flare for expression make it both a fabulous and informative read. You won't be disappointed.
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Summary: A Year of Discovery
Review: As a fellow lover of traveling and adventure off the beaten path, this book captivated my senses and made me want to rush out into the Arctic. It was well written, and didn't speak only to the author like many travel books do. Alvah was able to paint us a picture and drop us into the snow and wind with him....I highly recommend this one!
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Summary: Janett says" Best Book of 1999"
Review: Best book I read this year. Will reread, beautifully written
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Summary: The Internal and External Challenges of Polar Adventure
Review: In 1994-95 the author, his wife Diana, and their cat named Halifax, sailed to the Arctic in their 36-foot cutter, the Roger Henry, for an arctic experience. They spent a year in Baffin Bay, off the coast of Greenland, completely frozen in during the winter. His excellent writing is full of facts, from the mechanical details of getting making their boat seaworthy, to the history, geography, wildlife and interactions with the Intuit people.Beyond that, though, there was something more. The challenges he faces are stark and realistic and he makes mistakes along the way nearly costing him his life, grappling with internal challenges as well as external ones. Along the way he learns great lessons in life. As I read this book, I was right there with him, feeling his awe at the natural beauty, his thrill of the adventure as well as his loneliness and his fear. I was also constantly impressed by his ingenuity in solving the many constant technical unforeseen problems. I couldn't put the book down, staying up almost all night to just keep reading and reading. I know I'll never take a trip like this. But I thank him for writing the book and giving me the privilege of experiencing just a little bit of this wild and frozen landscape. Highly recommended.
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Summary: Great Read!
Review: As a sailor who reads a lot of sailing naratives, this one is great! Highly recommend it. Simon is insightful, and honest. There were several times in the book that Simon started to sound like a single-minded egotist, but in his story he keeps redeeming himself with renewed humility and insight. Through circumstance, he is forced to go into the shadow and face the great nemisis of humnankind, fear. We all deal with our fear through a combination of avoidance, denial, and confrontation. But in the extreme cold and dark of the north, Simon has no choice but to meet his fear, entertain it, live day-to-day with it, alone, until at last he recognizes that he can let go....and he does. Coming to trust in something larger than the extremes of the north, the brutality of the cold...he sees the freedom of simply recognizing the beauty of what is in this moment.
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Summary: Exciting Idea and Journey
Review: What a read this book turned out to be. If you enjoyed "Into Thin Air", you'll like this one. Much like "Into Thin Air" it's the story of a man who's spirit of adventure almost gets the best of him, as he sets off to explore and experience a world once unknown to him on his own. As his journey progresses he begins to realize that as much as he'd like to think he's in control, there is a higher power that seems to be watching over him and keeping him safe. What I enjoyed most about the book were the pictures in my mind I was creating as Alvah was describing them in print: the giant ice-bergs, the polar bears, night that streched on for months and the reapperance of the sun. It was fun to read and really was an interesting way to learn about a part of the world (and the people that live there) that I really hadn't read much about.
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Summary: A fantastic story of adventure
Review: If you are a lover of true adventure stories, this is one for you. It is a well written, in depth story of a remarkable experience in the far arctic north. Very few people have ever experienced such an epic and if they have, few have ever written about it in such vivid terms. This story allows the reader to live it vicariously through Alvah Simons detailed account. It ranks right up there with "Endurance" as one of my favorite tales of survival. A great read!
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Summary: Dumb title - good book
Review: This was a good story depicting a pretty amazing year of survival in the high arctic. The descriptions of arctic sailing, arctic history, weather, geography and wildlife were intriguing and accurate. Although the author tended to over-romanticize at times (went a little sappy here and there -- consider the title), overall it was an intriguing read about a very rare adventure.
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Summary: Hard to put down
Review: I love books about sailing, boats, and adventure. I picked this one up because it looked interesting. I had read Simon's article in Cruising World and thought it exciting. This is a real life adventure. Some of the Amazon reviews question this man's senses. He's a real world guy... living out his dream. If you have ever had a dream filled with adventure...you will enjoy and understand this book. Start your adventure today, live your dream vicarously through Simon's adventure.
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