From Publishers Weekly
Myths, legends and the folkore of North-country clans and races swirl throughout this saga of an Alaskan heroine, Ashana, who is taken hostage in 1790 by the leader of marauding Russian traders. Under Aleksandr Baranov, the cruel fur dealer to whom she is concubine--mere plunder--Ashana is succored by memories of family life; by a rich pantheistic heritage, especially the spirit world of The Raven; and, most of all, by the love of Jabila, the Alaskan youth to whom she spiritually remains wife despite her abduction. Ashana gradually becomes "Princess Anna" as the woman of Baranov, founder of the Siberian trading company whose success brings him honor from Mother Russia, including acknowledgment from the czarina. Ashana's passion for freedom never wanes, but her attempts to escape are thwarted. As the years pass, she bears two children by Baranov, is separated from them and comes to feel the sting of loss less, and anger more. This is a strong rendering of the exploitation of native Alaskan culture by foreigners. Although the rough edges of research are perhaps evident, the broad, sweeping tale enlightens and astonishes. This first novel is a joint effort; Ethel and Paul Roesch have combined the initials of their given names in a pseudonym.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From School Library Journal
YA-- In a lyrical novel woven of Alaskan shadow-spirit and Russian reality, Ashana, a young Athabascan maiden taken hostage by a Russian trader, recounts the tale of her survival during the reign of Catherine the Great. Based on a true story recorded in 1843 by Ashana's grandson, the monk Kristofer, this story will remind readers that the Russian hunters who crossed the Bering Strait inflicted harsh penalties on Native Americans of the region. The authors have juxtaposed the rituals of Ashana's clan with the imperialism of her Russian captor, by whom she bore a son and a daughter. Guided by the symbolic snowbirds circling the Arctic skies and sustained by her love for her Native American husband, Ashana outlives her captor and the children. This haunting novel will interest YAs who are not put off by complex tales. Ashana offers perspective to the history of the Alaskan settlement while celebrating the sad beauty of the American Indians of Yaghesen; its richness will hold those interested in folklore.
- Margaret Nolan, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
