The Man Who Swam with Beavers - Softcover

Lord, Nancy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1566891108 ISBN 13: 9781566891103

Publisher: Coffee House Press, 2001

Synopsis

The indie press answer to Survivor.

Inspired by Alaska Native legends and myths of her adopted state, Nancy Lord explores humankind’s innate need for contact with nature in the contemporary fables that make up The Man Who Swam with Beavers. The title refers to a Dena’ina Indian story about a man who lives with beavers, and realizes that all creatures have “their own lives, as complete and legitimate as any others.” These wry, imaginative stories portray modern American life against a backdrop of traditional wisdom about what it takes to live well in the world.

About this title

About the Author

Nancy Lord lives in Homer, Alaska where she writes, teaches creative writing for the University of Alaska, and fishes commercially for salmon. Her stories and essays have appeared in Ploughshares, Antioch Review, Sierra, North American Review and Manoa. Her books include Green Alaska: Dreams from the Far Coast, Fishcamp: Life on an Alaskan Shore and Survival.

Reviews

Alaskan transplant Nancy Lord (Survival), a writer and teacher who also fishes commercially for salmon, puts a contemporary spin on indigenous Alaskan folktales in The Man Who Swam with Beavers, and the results are often delightful. Standouts among the 17 stories include "Wolverine Grudge," in which a woman, inspired by an episode of Seinfeld, becomes obsessed with making harassing phone calls to her ex-husband's office. And in the utterly charming title piece, a man leaves behind his job and family to take up residence with a clan of the furry, friendly dam builders. National advertising; author tour.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

There's something for every taste in this eclectic collection of short stories inspired by Native Alaskan myths and legends of the author's adopted state. An Alaskan since 1973, Lord (Fishcamp: Life on an Alaskan Shore, LJ 4/15/97) teaches creative writing at the University of Alaska and is a commercial salmon fisher. In many of these 17 pieces, ranging from poignant and fanciful to depressing or bizarre, animals figure as prominently as people. A retired orthopedic surgeon becomes interested in birds, a wolf-dog can't escape his wildness and lives in both worlds, a woman's wedding to a bear is thwarted because the bear fears excessive civilization, a teenage boy explains his two lesbian mothers, and a ninth-grader tries to adjust to her mother's death from cancer. Readers interested in Alaska or in the contemporary use of folk and fairytales will enjoy this collection. Recommended. Ellen R. Cohen, Rockville, MD
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Coffee House Press
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1566891108
• ISBN 13: 9781566891103
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 220