Posts by MELISSA COFFMAN
Hardship Alaska, by Donald Proffit
Hardship Alaska, by Donald Proffit Some memories of his two years of alternative service as a Vietnam-era conscientious objector continue to haunt Donald Proffit, aka Buzz, in unresolved conversations and partings over dinners and by front doors, in beds and at bars. Others, however, have been exorcized completely, leaving him with a better understanding of who…
Read MoreVoyage of the Eclipse, by Erik T. Hirschmann
Voyage of the Eclipse, by Erik T. Hirschmann Spring 1802, the apex of the lucrative Pacific maritime fur trade. After troubled encounters in the South Pacific and Hawai’i, the crew of the Boston brig Eclipse gamble their lives on the Alaskan coast amid furiously competitive English and American ships, Russian fur hunters, and hostile Tlingit…
Read MoreWriting on the Edge, by David A. James
Writing on the Edge, by David A. James Writing on the Edge brings together twenty-four authors who use literary essays and fiction to describe contemporary life in Alaska in the twenty-first century. Spanning the state from the Southwest Panhandle to the Arctic coast, from the rugged landlocked Interior to the rough open seas, from wide…
Read MoreSeattle Ghost Story, by Nick DiMartino
Seattle Ghost Story, by Nick DiMartino Ever since a mysterious, fatal accident in the ravine, Pepper Merlino’s world has become a place of fear. Her neighbor, Joe Strozza, a Chicago artist with AIDS who’s come to Seattle to die, is being tormented by unrelenting nightmares. Eleven-year-old Billy Beck, who witnessed the fatal accident, has been…
Read MoreSivulliq: Ancestor, by Lily H. Tuzroyluke
Sivulliq: Ancestor, by Lily H. Tuzroyluke In the spring of 1893, arctic Alaska is devastated by smallpox. Kayaliruk knows it is time to light the funeral pyres and leave their home. With her surviving children, she packs their dog sled and they set off to find family. Kayaliruk wakes with a bleeding scalp and no…
Read MoreIt’s Only Fishing, by Joseph Jackson
It’s Only Fishing, by Joseph Jackson 2020 was a year of change. Caught between occupations and a global pandemic, 24-year-old Joe Jackson decided to write an essay for every fly-fishing trip he took. And just like the fishing itself, these essays drift from the metaphysical to the wholly matter-of-fact; they chronicle the spontaneous spectacles of…
Read MoreNorth Country Detective, by Tom Brennan
North Country Detective, by Tom Brennan North Country Detective is the life story of George Tallent, an Alaska Native, man who becomes an Alaska State Trooper and his best friend, Rick Albert a man born on the same day who moves from the East Coast to spend his life on nation’s northern frontier. George and…
Read MoreChristmas Ghost Story, by Nick DiMartino
Christmas Ghost Story, by Nick DiMartino Gina opened her eyes. She was standing in the remains of the vegetable garden, in the middle of the night. She was alone in her nightgown, clutching a shovel. She had been digging. Was she losing her mind? Gina became very afraid that she might be… Gina Rossi has…
Read MoreAlaska’s Malamute Man, by Joe Henderson
Alaska’s Malamute Man, by Joe Henderson Alaska’s Malamute Man is a unique and exciting look behind the scenes of Joe Henderson’s Arctic expeditions. Joe quotes, “For more than 35 years my Arctic expeditions and stories have captivated peoples’ imaginations from around the world.” Alaska’s Malamute Man – a journal, allows us the opportunity to go…
Read MoreArt and Eskimo Power; The Life and Times of Alaskan Howard Rock, by Lael Morgan
Art and Eskimo Power; The Life and Times of Alaskan Howard Rock, by Lael Morgan A shaman had predicted that Howard Rock would become a great man. He was born in 1911 in Point Hope, an Inupiat village in northwest Alaska where the people had lived off the land and sea for centuries. Instead of…
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