Customer Reviews

North to the Night: A Spiritual Odyssey in the Arctic

5 star:		(48)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

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.

"North to the Night" would be a great true adventure story even if it were written only as a mere chronology of a fantastic trip to the high arctic. It is more than that. Fortunately, the author saw fit to weave the story of his own intra and interpersonal "voyages" into the narrative itself. For those, unfortunately, who are unable to indentify with his virtual despair on returning to "civiization" after thirteen years of sailing adventures or his obsession to spend a year virtually alone in the high artic, such intimate personal discussions might seem bizarre or self-serving. I found it all fascinating. So, too, with his discussions of the Inuit and the Arctic environment itself. Sensitive, insightful and, like the book as a whole, beautifully written. I have for years been a fan of sailing adventure stories and have read many. This is one of the best. I only hope his next book is not too far off.

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.

Undoubtedly one of THE best books I've read in my 30+ years - Alvah Simon paints a brilliant, raw picture of adventure and challenge in the grip of the Arctic. His storytelling is as riveting as his story, and I sacrificed many many things for reading time with him.

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.

I don't like sailing. I don't like to be cold. I cannot imagine locking myself up in a boat in the dark Arctic for more than about 3 hours. I'm not even a guy! However, I love this book. It has everything. Romance, adventure, humor, intrigue -- and it's TRUE. I read A LOT of books. I know a good story. This is a GREAT one.

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!

There is no doubt that Alvah Simon is a gifted, driven, and highly unusual individual. By embarking upon his "Spiritual Odyssey in the Arctic" he tested the strength of his boat (the Roger Henry), his love (Diana Simon), and his mind. By writing about it he has allowed us cold-fearing readers to live through the short days and long nights of the North.

In sum, his story is a captivating one. You definitely become attached to Alvah, but that doesn't always mean that you like him. Frequently, the author is condescending, unwilling to compromise, cheesy, and generally unpleasant. But through it all, he does remain honest - and this makes this story a worthwhile read. You feel for Alvah as when he is startled by a polar bear, or when he breaks his cats ear, or wakes up blind. You dive into the cold of his boat and the difficulties of day to day life at -30F. Throughout it all, you are thankful that it is he and not you.

I finished this book with an odd feeling of understanding. I was not there, but through his words, the author made me think that I was. I am writing this review months after having finished the book. And yet, I can still picture in my mind the pain and the pleasure that Alvah Simon endured. Very very powerful.

I loved this book. It is just weird enough to keep me wondering and yet it is real enough for me to identify with the author's need to test himself. He conveys the weight of his struggles when he gets in over his head well enough to make my chest tighten. His writing is moving and vivid if not beautiful.

I have shared my copy with several friends and urge everyone to take a night or two off to set sail with Mr. Simon and his sweetheart. Almost every time I pass my globe I still look at the island neat where he spent the winter and shake my head. I have spent a few nights outside in a tent and sleeping bag in weather ten below farenheit, but I can't imagine attempting something this weird and yet something so wonderful.

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.