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To The Bright Edge of the World

by Eowyn Ivey (Goodreads Author)

4.2 · Rating Details · 3,293 Ratings · 781 Reviews

Set again in the Alaskan landscape that she bought to stunningly vivid life in THE SNOW CHILD, Eowyn Ivey's new novel is a breathtaking story of discovery and adventure, set at the end of the nineteenth century, and of a marriage tested by a closely held secret.

Colonel Allen Forrester receives the commission of a lifetime when he is charged to navigate Alaska's hitherto im ...more

Hardcover, 432 pages

Published August 2nd 2016 by Little, Brown and Company (first published August 2016)

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Community Reviews

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Sep 03, 2016 Angela M rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley-reviews

I wanted to read this book because The Snow Child is such a beautifully told story and Ivey's writing is so captivating . Although this one is a very different kind of story, it is gripping and beautiful as well and told in a unique way. It's a different kind of narrative consisting of journal entries, drawings, photos, diary entries, descriptions of artifacts, newspaper articles, official army reports and my favorite selections, the beautiful love letters. Ivey does a masterful job of blending
I wanted to read this book because The Snow Child is such a beautifully told story and Ivey's writing is so captivating . Although this one is a very different kind of story, it is gripping and beautiful as well and told in a unique way. It's a different kind of narrative consisting of journal entries, drawings, photos, diary entries, descriptions of artifacts, newspaper articles, official army reports and my favorite selections, the beautiful love letters. Ivey does a masterful job of blending these pieces to create a story of adventure, of history, of love, of native tribes of the Wolverine, of spirits, of the uncharted place that was Alaska in 1885.

Mainly it is told through the journal of Lieut. Col. Allen Forrester in which he details the long and arduous journey along the Wolverine River to Alaska while on a reconnaissance mission , alternating with his wife Sophie's diary as she waits for his return. All of this is contained within a current day story of an ancestor of Forrester, depicted in correspondence with a young man in Alaska who curates a museum of Alaska's history. It's not as confusing as it sounds. The descriptions of the landscape and natural surroundings take you there. The vivid details of the trek, the hunger, the danger of enemies both human and non, the goodness of natives met along the way take you there.

There is so much in Sophie's diaries as well . She feels stifled by the views of society on the place of women . Even though she suffers a loss, she thrives while waiting for her husband's return. She is independent, intelligent, loves the natural surroundings and is teaching herself photography to be able to preserve some of the beauty she sees in birds especially the hummingbird. This is a beautiful image juxtaposed against the recurring Raven, an ominous image and symbol throughout. I would have given it five stars but I have to admit I felt it was drawn out and a little slow at times. But then this perhaps perfectly reflected the long, slow journey of Forrester and his men. Ivey is a talented writer and I will look for what she does in the future.

I really wanted to know how much of the story was based on fact and found this brief interview with the author https://www.theguardian.com/books/201....

Thanks to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley. ...more

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Nov 02, 2016 Paromjit rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley, literary-fiction, historical-fiction

This is an enthralling and atmospheric historical novel set in late nineteenth century Alaska. The narrative takes the form of interwoven articles, photographs, journals, diary, letters etc.. There are three different storylines. Recently married Colonel Allen Forrester is entrusted to map the impassable Wolverine River in Alaska and document information on the various native Indian tribes. His journal gives an insight into this harrowing and pioneering expedition, including their experience of This is an enthralling and atmospheric historical novel set in late nineteenth century Alaska. The narrative takes the form of interwoven articles, photographs, journals, diary, letters etc.. There are three different storylines. Recently married Colonel Allen Forrester is entrusted to map the impassable Wolverine River in Alaska and document information on the various native Indian tribes. His journal gives an insight into this harrowing and pioneering expedition, including their experience of folklore, magical realism and shamanism. His strong and independent wife, Sophie, finds herself having to remain in the barracks upon discovering that she is pregnant. Her diary entries tell of her life whilst Allen is away. Walt, a relative of Colonel Allen Forrester, sends a box of Allen's journals with other items, to document this vital history of Alaska to Joshua Sloan, a museum curator.

Allen is accompanied by the colourful Sergeant Tillman, the moody and troubled Lieutenant Pruitt and by the invaluable and helpful trapper, Samuelson. They are to experience many desperate privations that include extreme hunger, the biting cold, and loss of much needed supplies. They encounter differing attitudes from the various Indian tribes, but would not be alive if they had not received vital help from them. They continually encounter the disturbing, unnerving and contrary old Eyak man. They encounter the beauty of this inhospitable region such as its awe inspiring and challenging landscape and the Aurora Borealis. The expedition inevitably takes in severe losses.

Sophie chafes at the strictures placed on her by the army and the circle of women prone to gossip. After tragedy strikes, she subsumes her grief to focus on becoming a photographer. She has a burning desire to photograph birds, particularly hummingbirds, and despite all the obstacles she faces, she charts her own pioneering path. It requires immense patience and fortitude, she is helped by pharmacist Henry Redington and Charlotte who becomes her assistant. The love letters between Sophie and Allen document the depth of their love and its progressive nature given the historical period.

At a dinner in the barracks where an Indian Chief is present, we come face to face with the fear, ignorance and racism directed towards him and a young Chinese boy. The white trader, Jensen, sees Indians as less than human and as slaves. Indians are gruesomely massacred, and we discover that Allen is forced to break promises he made to Indians. Carnage is to follow in the footsteps of the expedition and the consequent arrival of the mining industry and fur trappers to the region. Indians are forced to abandon their traditional lifestyles and values. The detrimental effects of tuberculosis, influenza and alcoholism hit hard. The complications of humanity and its abuses is writ large in this novel.

Walt and Josh's relationship grows and develops as Josh connects ever more deeply and personally with the historical journals and artefacts of the expedition. Josh begins to compare his knowledge of the changes that have taken place in the region since the expedition and prepares an exhibition that connects the past with the present. This is an impeccably researched and epic story that gives us well formed and engaging characters of the time. The descriptions given are so good that you feel that you are there with the characters. Just loved the book and cannot recommend it highly enough. Thanks to Headline for an ARC. ...more

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Oct 17, 2016 Cheri rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, 2016

I’ve finished the pages, closed my kindle, and yet, I still feel held in this otherworldly moment, unwilling to rejoin “this” world that is my real life. Even that seems untrue, because this story feels so real, it’s hard to believe that any part of this is fictional, not real.

Eowyn Ivey’s novel, “To the Bright Edge of the World” is lovely, the prose is gorgeous, and the varying points of view made this all the more compelling.

Walter, Walt, Forrester wants to find a home for the boxes of lette I’ve finished the pages, closed my kindle, and yet, I still feel held in this otherworldly moment, unwilling to rejoin “this” world that is my real life. Even that seems untrue, because this story feels so real, it’s hard to believe that any part of this is fictional, not real.

Eowyn Ivey’s novel, “To the Bright Edge of the World” is lovely, the prose is gorgeous, and the varying points of view made this all the more compelling.

Walter, Walt, Forrester wants to find a home for the boxes of letters and journals and various artifacts which relate to an expedition made by his great-Uncle in 1885 through Alaska as a Lieutenant Colonel. As a boy Walter had read these letters and journals, and again at other points in his life. He has always found them fascinating, and they are very dear to him. Now in his 70s, he feels they should find a place where they can safely be admired by others.

Walter finds a small museum which sits near the river Lt. Col. Allen Forrester had travelled by in Alpine, Alaska. When Joshua Sloan, curator of the museum, first receives the boxes of letters, journals, photographs, newspaper clippings, with more to come, he fears his museums isn’t exactly where these items belong, but as he begins reading, he falls deeply into their spell. As a member of the Wolverine River tribe, he recognizes the places Forrester’s journal describes. As he writes back to Walter, there is the natural back and forth their letters take, and soon a friendship is formed.

If you’ve read Eowyn Ivey’s The Snow Child, you will already be aware of her ability to seamlessly weave in myth, fable and folklore into her stories, athis novel set in Alaska contains all that, and more. It’s an adventure story on two fronts: Allen’s trek across the wilderness with his crew and assorted others, as well as his wife Sophie’s somewhat tamer adventure - in our eyes, perhaps - but borderline scandalous behavior for the time, filling her days with her newfound passion. There’s a bit of mystery involved, and some tense, terrifying moments for Allen & crew as they trek through territory deemed haunted.

“I can find no means to account for what we have witnessed, except to say that I am no longer certain of the boundaries between man & beast, of the living & the dead. All that I have taken for granted, what I have known as real & true, has been called into question.” – Lt. Col. Allen Forrester

A historical novel with supernatural occurrences, add in a fable/fairy-tale like quality with magical realism, one heck of an adventure story, and a love story that takes many forms. The love story of Allen and Sophie. The love of Alaska and its wild but unquestionable beauty. Not to mention the love of the reader for these characters, and for this gift of a story.

Pub Date: 02 Aug 2016

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Little, Brown and Company, NetGalley and author Eowyn Ivey
...more

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Jul 24, 2016 Diane S ☔ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

When Colonel Forrester leaves from the army barracks in Vancouver, he is charged with exploring the Wolverine River in the newly acquired territory of Alaska. He leaves behind his wife, Sophie. As he blazes a trail in the wilderness, filled with tribes of different Indians, horrific snowstorms, lack of food, loss of supplies and many surreal and some dangerous happenings, his wife is blazing her own trail. After suffering a personal tragedy, Sophie, bored with gossip and teas with the other army ...more

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Nov 08, 2016 Larry Hoffer rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley

Eowyn Ivey is one of those rare authors whose talent shines brightly when they are capturing small, quiet moments, as well as dramatic occurrences. Her first book, The Snow Child , was an absolute wonder, and it made my list of the best books I read in 2012. In her new book, To the Bright Edge of the World , Ivey returns to her beloved Alaska and dazzles once again.

One of the things that's so remarkable about Ivey's talent is that this book is so tremendously compelling despite the fact that t Eowyn Ivey is one of those rare authors whose talent shines brightly when they are capturing small, quiet moments, as well as dramatic occurrences. Her first book, The Snow Child , was an absolute wonder, and it made my list of the best books I read in 2012. In her new book, To the Bright Edge of the World , Ivey returns to her beloved Alaska and dazzles once again.

One of the things that's so remarkable about Ivey's talent is that this book is so tremendously compelling despite the fact that the two main characters are almost never together.

In 1885, Lieutenant Colonel Allen Forrester has agreed to take on a challenging and potentially dangerous mission, to lead a small group of men up the Wolverine River and into the Alaska Territory. They're not really sure to what to expect from this expedition, but Allen is determined to find answers as to what—and whom—awaits them. He leaves behind his young pregnant wife, Sophie, who had hoped to travel with Allen at least part of the way, until she found out she was expecting.

Being stuck in the Vancouver barracks is not the type of life Sophie had in mind. Her passion for nature and wildlife, birds in particular, is out of step with most women of her time, particularly those living in the barracks. But she doesn't really seem to care. She isn't content to simply sit and gossip, or entertain women at her home (much less ensure the house is adequately clean for them). She'd much rather find an elusive hummingbird or other birds she's not familiar with.

"I told myself I would never take it for granted—the freedom to choose my own dress, to plan my days, to walk where I desired and see what I would."

Allen and his men find Alaska breathtakingly beautiful, unforgiving, baffling, and at times tremendously rewarding. Yet there appears to be at least the threat of danger around every corner, and they must contend with the weather, the tundra itself, settlements of Indians which react differently to Allen's group, the challenges of living in close proximity with each other, and some strange occurrences which don't seem as if they have any basis in reality. Allen chronicles everything in his journal, since he knows his letters may take a very long time to reach Sophie, and he views his journal as the ultimate record should their exploring fail.

For her part, Sophie also keeps a diary, chronicling her loneliness and longing for Allen, her feeling stifled by barracks life and the gossiping women around her, and the excitement she feels when she discovers photography is an outlet for both her love of nature and her independent, creative spirit. She is a woman so used to following her own course yet she'd give anything to be with her husband again, or at least get word of his condition.

Allen and Sophie's stories are told against the backdrop of correspondence between Allen's great-nephew and the curator of an Alaskan museum, which also are fascinating exchanges about cultural identity, the thirst for adventure, and both how alike and how different we are from each other.

Much like an expedition, the book started slowly but picked up steam as it progressed. Ivey's characters felt so lifelike, their struggles so real, I felt totally invested in their lives. Ivey has such a way with imagery, with emotion, that I pictured the book in my mind's eye and felt it in my heart. This is totally a keeper and it is utterly memorable.

NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company provided me an advance copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making this available!

See all of my reviews at http://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blo.... ...more

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Jan 17, 2017 Linda O'Donnell rated it it was amazing

Shelves: alaska-theme, 5-star-winners, historical-fiction

How is it that we tell a story?

The best of them are true extensions of the human spirit relayed through journals, diaries, letters, photos, and the like. It's the hand that grips us tightly and takes us deeply into the experiential catacombs of another.

Oh, Eowyn Ivey does it so well as she did with such finesse in The Snow Child before this. To make us, the readers, feel with this finite acuity is a gift. If you take away anything from this novel, just read the letter from Lieutenant Colonel For How is it that we tell a story?

The best of them are true extensions of the human spirit relayed through journals, diaries, letters, photos, and the like. It's the hand that grips us tightly and takes us deeply into the experiential catacombs of another.

Oh, Eowyn Ivey does it so well as she did with such finesse in The Snow Child before this. To make us, the readers, feel with this finite acuity is a gift. If you take away anything from this novel, just read the letter from Lieutenant Colonel Forrester to his wife, Sophie, that begins on Page 376.

To The Bright Edge of the World is an amazing journey told through the perspectives of Lieutenant Colonel Forrester, Sophie Forrester, and two gentlemen, more present day, who are organizing the journals and field diaries of the Forresters. Forrester and his men begin a grueling expedition in the winter of 1885 along the Wolverine River and into the Alaskan Territory. They encounter the cruelties of the rugged terrain around every corner.....and they are ill-prepared for what lies ahead of them. They come across the painfully real and, perhaps, the questionably imagined.

The indigenous tribes play a remarkable role throughout the story. Their presence dips into the inkwell of such thoughts, words, and actions told in almost unspeakable terms. Survival depended upon these individuals and annihilation by these same people was, indeed, a reality borne out in times past.

Sophie Forrester exists in parallel with her husband. She waits anxiously for any bit of news through scant letters. But Sophie carries the heaviness of a burden that few words can describe. She lives with this reality and it swaddles her in grief both day and night. She must cut a path of her own making in a time when such behavior turns heads. "I wonder that any life has ever been confined to golden dances and fine stitches and silk, for it seems to me that suffering knows no class or rank, gender or age, and we each of us brave our own darkness."

And those of us who have experienced the majesty of Alaska, I can only say it in the Colonel's words: "I begin to try to comprehend gray rivers that roar down from the glaciers, mountains & spruce valleys as far as the eye can see. It is grand, inscrutable wildness."

...more

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Sep 18, 2016 Jen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is a put on the fire, heat up some hot chocolate and wrap yourself in a warm fluffy blanket kind of read. It is slow paced, atmospheric, detailed, an exchange of letters.
The year is 1885. Allen Forrester is on an expedition traversing the Alaskan wilderness with a small group of men to map out the territory.
He writes to his wife, Sophia, who sits at home in confinement, waiting for her husband to return. He writes of the terrain, the hardships.
She writes back of her own challenges she face ...more

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Jan 12, 2017 Karen rated it really liked it

This story is full of adventure and discovery as Colonel Alan Forrester is commissioned to go to the Wolverine River in Alaska, with just a few men, the year is 1885.

This story tells of everything the men encountered, how his new wife Sophie got on without him while she stayed in the military barracks, and tells a simultaneous story, in modern day, of Forrester's great nephew and his handling of Forrester's artifacts and journals from the adventure

I did like this very much, but not nearly as muc ...more

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Nov 08, 2016 Bam rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, magical-realism, adventure, favorites, 2016-aty-reading-challenge, 2016-reading-challenge, 2016-netgalley

I fell totally head-over-heels in love with this book! Through NetGalley, I've been fortunate enough to read several books being published this year with advanced reader's copies and this is by far one of the finest--many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity!

Now the question is: how to do this gem justice in my review? How to describe the pleasure this book has given me? Those who know me well know I have a fascination and love for Alaska, having recently return I fell totally head-over-heels in love with this book! Through NetGalley, I've been fortunate enough to read several books being published this year with advanced reader's copies and this is by far one of the finest--many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity!

Now the question is: how to do this gem justice in my review? How to describe the pleasure this book has given me? Those who know me well know I have a fascination and love for Alaska, having recently returned from our second trip there in ten years. I still have northern lights in my eyes and dream of mountain vistas! Shortly after our trip, I read an account of John Muir's explorations in Alaska (Alaska Days with John Muir) written by his friend and traveling companion, Samuel Hall Young, which I thoroughly enjoyed and recommend for those interested in the early exploration of Alaska.

For a fictionalized account along the same lines, I highly recommend Eowyn Ivey's new book, To The Bright Edge of the World. It is first and foremost historical fiction and adventure, about a reconnaissance expedition undertaken in March, 1885, to explore and map the interior of the newly purchased Alaskan territory and document the native tribes found along the Wolverine River. The party is made up of Lieutenant Colonel Allen Forrester, Lieutenant Andrew Pruitt and Sergeant Bradley Tillman, plus the trapper Samuelson, invaluable for his rudimentary knowledge of native languages. They set off from Perkins Island a little later in the spring than they had hoped, with a crippled old Eyak man, a shaman wearing a top hat, gentleman's vest and necklace of bones, teeth and beads, plus three native boys, who were deemed too young to be off on the hunt with the rest of the men of the tribe.

The story is told through journals, reports, illustrations, photographs, newspaper clippings and artifacts that were collected by the Forrester family. One of the last remaining relatives, great-nephew Walter Forrester, now in his 70s and living in Montana, is in possession of all this 'treasure' and wants to make sure it is preserved as part of Alaskan history and has therefore sent boxes of the material to a small historical museum in Alpine, Alaska, near the same Wolverine River that the Forrester party explored. At first the exhibits curator, Joshua Sloan, is overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of material and wants to refuse it, suggesting it should be given to a much larger museum in Anchorage (with a larger staff to deal with it). But Walt urges him to reconsider and at least read through some of the journals before making his decision, and sure enough, when he does Josh is hooked. Part of the joy of reading this correspondence is the warm friendship that springs up between the two men who have met only through their letters.

Forrester's journals describe the beautiful landscape, the harrowing trek through ice fields, the losses they suffer in vivid detail. But what makes this account truly unique is the touch of magical realism that begins to permeate his report of their experiences almost right from the start: before they even leave Perkins Island, Allen spots the lame old shaman high up in a spruce tree in the middle of the night and is creeped out. How did he get up there...and why? The natives call him 'the man who flies.' Is he their helper or their enemy? Often they are not really sure as he cackles at their misfortunes. He seems to hand out hexes and healing in equal measure. Forrester reports several other strange experiences that officials later put down to hallucinations brought on by exposure to harsh conditions, exhaustion and starvation. They couldn't possibly be real, right?

Back at the Vancouver Barracks awaits Allen's young wife, Sophie, a former teacher who is pregnant with their first child, and many of the writings included are her journals which express her worries, loneliness and boredom at being left to await her husband's return. She is the daughter of a sculptor who apparently went quite mad before his death but Sophie has never found that same artistic spark within herself. She does loves nature, especially birds, and appreciates that certain quality of light and shadow. Before the men leave on their assignment, Sophie becomes very interested in Pruitt's photographic instruments and decides to pursue that hobby herself after tragedy strikes. She finds she has the artistic eye for composition, shadow and light--and above all, the fortitude and patience to await the perfect moment for her shot. She specializes in birds and comes to the realization that the nest might be the ideal spot for a chance at a great photo--especially of her favorite, the hummingbird. (This made me laugh with shared frustration as we have often struggled to catch a shot of those little flitters in our garden!)

Sophie little cares that she is the subject of much derision and consternation among the other officers' wives as she traipses through the fields surrounding the barracks in beat up clothes. Back then, women were expected to be predictable, quiet and insipid after all. But not her! History is not made by timid women.

In the present day, Josh notes with irony that by the very act of exploring, these men set off change. Within 20 years, mining and railroads would come to the area. Progress, with a capital P! But these brave explorers were also witnesses to the 'before' and document those details of native life that might otherwise have been forgotten.

No, I cannot do this book justice in this simple review, but let me say this book resonated with me and awakened great pleasure in the reading, transporting this reader to the early days of Alaskan exploration to see it with fresh eyes. Alaska of today might seem 'civilized' to those early explorers if they could see it now, but to most of us visitors, it is still an adventure--a harsh and beautiful world, ruled by mother nature. Thank you, Eowyn Ivey, for bringing this story and little known history to life.

#2016-aty-reading-challenge-week-45: A book related to a passion you have. ...more

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Nov 30, 2016 Kevin Ansbro rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: magical-realism, adventure, great-outdoors, quest, nature, romance, hist-fic, mythology, recommended-by-cheri, creative-non-fiction

"Ivashov and his men were sleeping in their sleds when, at a prearranged sign, the Midnooskies crushed each of the men's skulls with axes."

At first glance this is a story that I shouldn't like: it's essentially an account of an expedition into the frozen wilds of Alaska, expressed in the form of diaries and historical documents.
Sounds boring, right?
Wronggg!!!
This is in fact an epic tale of love, nature, historical adventure and North American mythology that had me absorbed from start to finish ...more

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Sep 08, 2016 Elyse rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley

From sparsely settled and poorly explored,.... ["an avalanche of snow, ice, earth, & rocks, that spilled down the gully, swept through our camp"]....
......."an adventure of a life time"......
to...
Present Day Rafting trips down the Wolverine River with comfortable sleeping quarters and freshly prepared meals. "The adventure of a life time".

It's hard to believe 'anything' about this novel is fiction. "To The Bright Edge of the World" is a 'novel' ... but feels like a historical biography. The ...more

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Jan 23, 2017 PattyMacDotComma rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favourites-adult, historical-fiction, arc-netgalley-read, calibre, kindle, just-read-or-reviewed

5
I don’t know if I can explain how much I enjoyed this book. I postponed reading it, thinking it might be long and slow, but for me, it was completely absorbing and fascinating.

This may be helped because my mother was a Lewis and Clark enthusiast and had a wonderful leather-bound edition of their journals. I didn’t read them, but I did read some of her other mountain men and fur trapper books and about opening up the American West. “Opening up” from a colonial-European standpoint, that is. I ima ...more

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Nov 04, 2016 Esil rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley

3.5 stars. I admired To the Bright Edge of the World more than I enjoyed reading it. I’m not sure if I can put my finger on why, because as I write my review I have mostly positive things to say about this book. Essentially, it tells the parallel stories of Colonel Allen Forrester and his wife Sophie in 1885. That year, the Colonel led an expedition into Alaska, while his wife Sophie stayed in Oregon. Their story is told through journal entries, letters, articles, artifacts and photographs. Adde ...more

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Aug 02, 2016 Rebecca Foster rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, epistolary, magic-realism, reviewed-for-blog, requested-from-publisher

Eowyn Ivey’s intricate second novel weaves together diaries, letters, photographs, and various other documents and artifacts to tell the gently supernatural story of an exploratory mission along Alaska’s Wolverine River in 1885 and its effects through to the present day. If you have read Ivey’s 2012 debut, The Snow Child, you’ll remark once again on her skill in bringing the bleak beauty of Alaska to life on the page and blending magic realism and folktales with a nonetheless realistic view of h Eowyn Ivey’s intricate second novel weaves together diaries, letters, photographs, and various other documents and artifacts to tell the gently supernatural story of an exploratory mission along Alaska’s Wolverine River in 1885 and its effects through to the present day. If you have read Ivey’s 2012 debut, The Snow Child, you’ll remark once again on her skill in bringing the bleak beauty of Alaska to life on the page and blending magic realism and folktales with a nonetheless realistic view of history.

In March 1885 Lieutenant Colonel Allen Forrester sets out with a small team – including brash Sergeant Bradley Tillman, melancholy photographer Lieutenant Andrew Pruitt, native guides, and Samuelson, a trapper who serves as a go-between – to navigate a previously unmapped portion of Alaska. Back at Vancouver Barracks he’s left his wife of four months, Sophie. Bold and curious, she intended to travel into Alaska with Allen until she learned she was pregnant. Now she passes the months of her confinement – and raises eyebrows among the military wives – by pursuing her amateur hobbies of birdwatching and photography.

Through alternating passages from journals by Allen and Sophie, Ivey contrasts the big adventures of surveying new territory with the smaller adventures of domestic life. Along their perilous journey Allen and his men encounter many legends and incidents they cannot explain: shape-shifters, like the women who morph into flocks of geese or the shaman who takes the form of a half-lame raven; a baby born out of a tree trunk; and a prehistoric creature that guards a lake. As Allen writes in a letter to Sophie towards the end of his journey:

I can find no means to account for what we have witnessed, except to say that I am no longer certain of the boundaries between man & beast, of the living and & dead. It has been a strange experience indeed. All that I have taken for granted, of what is real & true, has been called into question.

A framing story sets the historical narrative in the context of the present day: Walter Forrester has sent his great-uncle Allen’s letters and journal to a small Alaska museum for safekeeping. Initially the young curator, Joshua Sloan, is annoyed at the unwanted donation and the extra work it creates for him, but gradually – right alongside the novel’s readers – he starts to be sucked into the story the documents reveal. Through their correspondence, Josh and Walt develop a touching friendship despite their differences.

Ivey fits the pieces of her epistolary together in a sophisticated manner and makes you care about each of the characters. Sophie and Pruitt, especially, have traumatic backstories that help you understand their behavior. Sophie reminded me most of Meridian Wallace in Elizabeth J. Church’s The Atomic Weight of Love – both are self-taught scientists with a deep love for birds and a determination to live interesting lives even if others disapprove. The novel also brings to mind Maggie O’Farrell’s This Must Be the Place in that it skips back and forth in time and intersperses a central narrative with other documents, including an auction catalogue of relevant objects.

I found Sophie’s voice instantly more engaging than Allen’s shorthand-like style, and it took me a while – maybe 60–80 pages – to warm up to the storyline and characters. I would have appreciated an Author’s Note at the end of the book explaining what, if anything, was based on a true story and which documents are authentic. (As it is, I assume that all the characters are fictional but the explorers’ journey is based on the historical record.) Nonetheless, I can highly recommend this rollicking adventure tale to fans of historical fiction and magic realism.

With thanks to Katie Brown at Tinder Press for the free review copy.

Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck. ...more

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Sep 06, 2016 Marilyn C. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-in-2016

5 Stars for a story that is full of adventure and survival!

In the winter of 1885, Colonel Allen Forrester and his small company of soldiers began a risky expedition up the Wolverine River Valley in the untamed Alaskan Territory. His job was to map the region and gather information from the tribes that they would be encountering. Although they were prepared for this mission, they were also hesitant at what they might encounter, as this is uncharted territory and known to be extremely dangerous.

Th ...more

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Oct 14, 2016 Emma rated it liked it · review of another edition

There's so much in this book to love, but in the end it just didn't quite get me in the way I hoped it would.

As a historian, I am drawn to stories like these, based on real events or incredible places, and formatted as a collection of documents: letters, newspaper cuttings, diary entries etc. Ivey does this well, with an interesting balance between the daily reports of Lieutenant Colonel Allen Forrester and his attempts to navigate the Wolverine River and his wife Sophie, who suffers her own ha ...more

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Oct 12, 2016 Dorie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: historical-fiction, netgalley-books

It is hard to believe that what I just finished reading is fiction. This novel is told in beautiful prose and in the form of diaries, letters and descriptions of artifacts from Alaska, which seem to be something that I would find in a museum. That is exactly where this book starts.

Walter Forrester sends boxes of letters and journals from his great aunt and great uncle’s 1885 Alaskan expedition to Joshua Sloan who is the curator of a small museum in Alpine, Alaska. Mr. Sloan isn’t really sure th It is hard to believe that what I just finished reading is fiction. This novel is told in beautiful prose and in the form of diaries, letters and descriptions of artifacts from Alaska, which seem to be something that I would find in a museum. That is exactly where this book starts.

Walter Forrester sends boxes of letters and journals from his great aunt and great uncle’s 1885 Alaskan expedition to Joshua Sloan who is the curator of a small museum in Alpine, Alaska. Mr. Sloan isn’t really sure that his little museum is the right place for these ambitious treasures but he accepts them. Throughout his reading he becomes engrossed in the story and he and Walter form a friendship.

We have several points of view. There are the diaries of both Lieutenant Colonel Forrester and his wife Sophie as well as the letters from the present time between Walter and Joshua. There are letters written to and from Allen and Sophie. Allen Forrester heads up the expedition and charting journey into the unknown territory of Alaska and the Yukon territory. Previous attempts to survey and map this area by a Russian crew didn’t even make it to the half way point.

I had a problem getting into this book. I found the voice of Allen to be dry and very reserved, it isn’t until the end that we get to know what is in his heart, “This is what we will do as soon as I am returned to Vancouver: I will leave the service, as we have planned and I have so long desired. We will pack up our camp your camera too, and we will go to the wilderness, you and I to Yosemite”.

I very quickly warmed to Sophie, truly a pioneer who suffers personal loss only to find purpose in the photographing of Alaskan birds. She is very driven and resourceful and doesn’t fit well with the group of other wives who live in the barracks in Vancouver, she doesn’t like tea parties or knitting groups.

Throughout the journey the men face starvation, incredible cold, an “Old Man” who sometimes takes the shape of a limping raven, what appears to be a lake monster, and many other physical and emotional challenges.

I had hoped that the ending would state what part of this novel was based on historical fact but there were no author’s notes in this ARC copy. I tried researching the author but found only that there was an expedition at this time and place in Alaska.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a true adventure and would advise a comfortable chair and a cup or glass of whatever you enjoy because this book cannot be rushed. At times I wished that the book were shorter but I cannot think of what beautiful parts could be omitted.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher and NetGalley.
...more

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Nov 11, 2016 Margitte rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, reviewed, relationships, adventure, american-author, 2016-read, 2016-releases

FROM THE BLURB

Eowyn Ivey's new novel is a breathtaking story of discovery and adventure, set at the end of the nineteenth century, and of a marriage tested by a closely held secret.

Colonel Allen Forrester receives the commission of a lifetime when he is charged to navigate Alaska's hitherto impassable Wolverine River, with only a small group of men. The Wolverine is the key to opening up Alaska and its huge reserves of gold to the outside world, but previous attempts have ended in tragedy.

For F

FROM THE BLURB

Eowyn Ivey's new novel is a breathtaking story of discovery and adventure, set at the end of the nineteenth century, and of a marriage tested by a closely held secret.

Colonel Allen Forrester receives the commission of a lifetime when he is charged to navigate Alaska's hitherto impassable Wolverine River, with only a small group of men. The Wolverine is the key to opening up Alaska and its huge reserves of gold to the outside world, but previous attempts have ended in tragedy.

For Forrester, the decision to accept this mission is even more difficult, as he is only recently married to Sophie, the wife he had perhaps never expected to find. Sophie is pregnant with their first child, and does not relish the prospect of a year in a military barracks while her husband embarks upon the journey of a lifetime. She has genuine cause to worry about her pregnancy, and it is with deep uncertainty about what their future holds that she and her husband part.

A vivid, atmospheric, story of a landscape, the people who occupied it, and the effect it had on their lives in the earliest days of uncharted exploration in the late nineteenth century, around 1885.

The book is compiled in a unique way to establish a fictional authenticity that is as much ambitious as it is successful. Dreary and heavily dragging most of the time, it still is a good, informative, well-researched read for those who enjoy Alaskan stories and the mysteries and secrets enfolding its landscape and history.

The two main characters are Lieut. Col. Allen Forrester and his new wife, Sophie. Through love letters, diaries, and a modern day correspondence between a family member and the curator of a museum in Alaska, a tale of endurance, adventure and resilience is told in beautiful prose.

I enjoyed the experience, since I was interested in the wilderness, the natives, the invasion of a wonderland (although for less honorable future endeavors), and the richness of the collective historical environment it offered. It is not a book to be rushed through. The prose is picturesque, rich, and fascinating. It really demands attention and dedication, but it is truly worth the time. I really enjoyed it tremendously.

RECOMMENDED

PS. You can read this interview with the author about this book here https://www.theguardian.com/books/201... ...more

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Jan 12, 2017 Pamela rated it it was amazing

Shelves: literary-fiction, culture, journeys, historical-fiction, photography, adventure, alaska, magical-realism, oregon, american-indians, marital-relationships, sociological, epistolary, top-pick-read-in-2017

" It takes a kind of arrogance to think everything in the world can be measured and weighed with our scientific measurements."

Atmospherically Rich and Transporting . . . Dynamic, Memorable Characters . . . Ingenious Composition and Stylization . . . Mystical and Magical, yet Grounded in Natural World Realism and Historical Integrity.

And at times poetically lyrical....

"That is the excitement. We catch glimpses, a burst of movement, a flap of wings, yet it is life itself beating at shadows edge. ...more

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Aug 03, 2016 Jane rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I fell in love with this book; it captured both my head and my heart, completely and utterly.

My expectations were high, because this is the second novel by Alaskan author Eowyn Ivey, whose first novel, The Snow Child, had me very nearly lost for words. I remember reading it when it was shiny and new, and being delighted when ‘my’ book went on to be a huge success, much loved and much lauded.

I was thrilled when a copy of this second book, a rather bigger book, arrived. When I examined it more clo ...more

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Sep 04, 2016 Karen rated it it was amazing

I would give this book 6-stars, if I could. I can find numerous superlatives to describe how much I liked it but will try not to gush too much!

I became enthralled from the first pages when Walter Forrester sends unsolicited boxes of letters and journals of his great-uncle’s 1885 Alaskan mapping expedition a century ago to Joshua Sloan, exhibits curator of a small museum in Alpine, Alaska. The expedition was months long and through a harrowing 1000 miles of uncharted land. He also included some o I would give this book 6-stars, if I could. I can find numerous superlatives to describe how much I liked it but will try not to gush too much!

I became enthralled from the first pages when Walter Forrester sends unsolicited boxes of letters and journals of his great-uncle’s 1885 Alaskan mapping expedition a century ago to Joshua Sloan, exhibits curator of a small museum in Alpine, Alaska. The expedition was months long and through a harrowing 1000 miles of uncharted land. He also included some of his great-aunt’s writing. “These papers are some of the earliest, firsthand descriptions of those northern lands and natives”, Walt said. “There are also illustrations and photographs, newspaper clippings – odds and ends I’ve stumbled across over the years.”

The stories of Allen Forrester and his wife Sophie alternated and were absolutely stunning. From the gorgeous diaries and letters, to the capturing of the wild’s breathtaking beauty to the brilliant characters and magical realism, I sighed when I finished, not wanting it to end. I had fallen in love with these characters.

West Point graduate and decorated war hero Lieutenant Colonel Forrester and his colorful crew of explorers set off on their ambitious journey in a freezing wilderness before the gold rushes in Alaska and Yukon territory. He and his crew persevere despite enduring much suffering, extreme exposure, hostile Indians and starvation.

“I can find no means to account for what we have witnessed, except to say that I am no longer certain of the boundaries between man & beast, of the living & the dead. All that I have taken for granted, what I have known as real & true, has been called into question.” Allen Forrester

Allen leaves behind his pregnant wife Sophie. She spends months cut off from her new husband Allen, coping with long spells of worry and little communication. She is an amazing and resilient character, a gutsy woman who overcomes a heart-wrenching tragedy and sets her sights on becoming a photographer of birds. Journaling and letters are also a large part of her story. For anyone who has read some of my other reviews, I am a sucker for a book with beautifully written letters. This is one of those books. The journaling is remarkable and add a lot to the book’s brilliance.

I was touched by this beautiful story meshing man vs. nature with an enduring love story. It is a stunning work of fiction that feels historically accurate. Author Eowyn Ivey was raised in Alaska and her love for it shows. She was a Pulitzer Prize nominee in 2013 for her novel The Snow Child also set in Alaska; maybe she will get lucky and win the Prize for this effort that I liked even more. ...more

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Nov 27, 2016 Britany rated it liked it

Shelves: netgalley, bookriot, historical-fiction

This is a hard one to review. I absolutely fell in love with the layout of this novel about a voyage to explore the wild Alaskan frontier told through diaries, newspaper clippings, and letters. The diaries tell both sides of the Forrester family. Allen- a Colonel leading a team to scope out Alaska and his wife Sophie- who was by far my favorite character. She stays home in Washington, shedding all the gender roles being forced upon her by her peers to discover photography and her love of birds. ...more

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Oct 19, 2016 Myrna rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks

To the Bright Edge of the World has a Lewis and Clark vibe with a bit of mysticism. This is a work of fiction but at times it felt real. You can hear the characters speak and see Alaska's splendor. I believe this is Ivey's magnum opus. Highly recommended. 4.5stars!

...more

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Sep 23, 2016 Melissa Crytzer Fry rated it really liked it

If you’re expecting The Snow Child (Ivey’s first book – one of my all-time favorites) from this novel, you won’t find it here. Not in style or format. This book is 100% epistolary – told through journal entries, letters, newspaper clippings, museum placards and documents. Photos and drawings are also thrown in – as well as a present-day story of a museum curator who learns of the main characters’ historical legacy through his acquisition of their personal belongings.

I have to admit that this sty If you’re expecting The Snow Child (Ivey’s first book – one of my all-time favorites) from this novel, you won’t find it here. Not in style or format. This book is 100% epistolary – told through journal entries, letters, newspaper clippings, museum placards and documents. Photos and drawings are also thrown in – as well as a present-day story of a museum curator who learns of the main characters’ historical legacy through his acquisition of their personal belongings.

I have to admit that this style of back-and-forth (diary entry one page, drawing next page, etc.) was, at first off-putting for me – until I realized the willy-nillness of the items was meant to replicate the museum curator’s discovery of artifacts, letters and other items as he dug through the box of belongings. This was not, in fact, a gimmick to make the book more interesting. And, in the end, I think it worked remarkably well. (FYI: Had I known this, I think I would have struggled less with trying to figure out the lack of chronology of the placement of artifacts in the beginning of the book or why they were even there in some instances. This may be useful information to you upfront).

I have to admit, as a fan of The Snow Child, I was initially disappointed that the author didn’t employ the same third-person point of view that was done so exceptionally well and drew us so deeply into the emotional psyche of the characters in her first book. Others who haven’t read the debut – or those who love epistolary novels – may not have the same reaction I had. But for me, the diary/journal structure kept me at arm’s length from the characters for a great deal of the book. It took me a long time to reach a deep, emotional connection with them (300 pages).

And, admittedly, I don’t usually allow myself that many pages to decide if I’m fully invested in a book or its characters, BUT… my fondness for this novel grew with each page I read. I came to appreciate just what a true literary feat this book was: telling a story through epistolary technique only, having it all come together at the end, weaving in a universal theme (that only became apparent to me at about page 360 – a nice surprise, actually, with its subtlety), and peppering in Native American folklore. Then of course, there is the language, itself, oftentimes lyrical and lush with description.

There is much to admire here if you’re ok with a ‘quiet’ book (some parts, for me, puttered along – which may be due to the sheer length of the book). There is myth and folklore, interesting Native American characters - and blurred lines between reality and legend. Even the cover holds this same kind of magical-spiritual ambiguity (Well, at least I saw some ‘other' images lurking in the shadows of the book-jacket artwork).

So, my initial feelings of rating this as a “3” (I liked it) vs. a “4” (I really liked it) changed as I continued reading. Perhaps because this book featured elements of many of the things I love: nature, spiritualism with the natural world, photography, ornithology (birds … hummingbirds!), female characters who buck the system – and a deep moral question about culture and even man’s footprint on the Earth.

This passage, in particular, spoke to me (re: a discussion about the ripple effects of the Colonel’s expedition): WARNING – MAY BE A SPOILER - “It doesn’t matter what draws explorers – wealth or fame or military power, or even genuine curiosity – they alter a place just by traveling through it and recording what they see.” And this (about the magical components of the land, and how travelers ceased to experience this magic over time): “I’m not saying the other world is gone, because I’m not convinced it is. Maybe we just don’t have the eyes for it anymore.”

Ahh. So astute. So true this disconnect humans today have from the natural world. There is much to consider in this book, thematically: the struggle between wilderness and civilization, the struggle between cultures, the division between spiritual and human, and even the unfair nature of stereotyping – across gender, culture, sexual orientation, and even profession.

So, yes, if you enjoy historical fiction, literary fiction, epistolary techniques, nature, and folklore… Read this book! It’s hefty, at 413 pages, but promises a unique journey. Ivey again showcases her literary abilities in her sophomore novel, even if it’s in a completely different format. ...more

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Sep 27, 2016 Tania rated it really liked it

Shelves: favorite-books, historical-fiction, arc-netgalley, gr-2016-nominated

I can find no means to account for what we have witnessed, except to say that I am no longer certain of the boundaries between man & beast, of the living & dead. All that I have taken for granted, what I have known as real & true, has been called into question

Although very different than The Snow Child, there are definitely some similarities. To The Bright Edge of the World is written on a much bigger scope, covering a much larger area and many more characters. The novel is based loo ...more

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Aug 05, 2016 Claire McAlpine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, historical-fiction, around-the-world-2016

While it didn't grip me from its opening pages and hold me spellbound like her previous novel The Snow Child did, this is a novel that starts out in a somewhat detached, formal way, where the characters feel a little distant, but that slowly infiltrates the readers psyche and by the end we realise how much we have come to care what happens to them.

Set in 1885, the story is narrated firstly through the letters and diary entries of Lieutenant Allen Forrestor and his younger wife Sophie as he make ...more

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Jul 30, 2016 Kate rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: out-in-2016-and-read, favourites-read-in-2016

If I read a novel this year that I love more than this astonishing, beautiful masterpiece then I will be entirely surprised. The Snow Child is one of my very favourite novels and yet I think this exceeds it. Extraordinary.

A review: https://forwinternights.wordpress.com...

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Oct 23, 2016 TamElaine rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favourites, read-in-2016, netgalley, my-top-10-read-in-2016

A good book should be able to take me from my world and let me escape into another, to explore new lands and new minds, and perhaps experience a different time. This book did exactly that for me ! I was swept away into the depths of Alaska in the late 1800s and I loved it.

I savoured this book - it's everything I love - historical fiction, human connection, outdoor exploration, survival, beautiful characters one of which was ahead of her time, all trail blazers, literally and figuratively. There A good book should be able to take me from my world and let me escape into another, to explore new lands and new minds, and perhaps experience a different time. This book did exactly that for me ! I was swept away into the depths of Alaska in the late 1800s and I loved it.

I savoured this book - it's everything I love - historical fiction, human connection, outdoor exploration, survival, beautiful characters one of which was ahead of her time, all trail blazers, literally and figuratively. There's a brilliance in the writing of this novel, being able to bring out the depth of characters through letter writing and journal entries. I loved that Walt's character, even those shaped merely by his generation, came through and made me chuckle in his letter writing to Josh....and Josh is most definitely someone I would love to be friends with, as is Sophie. Even in journal entries, I was able to feel the beautiful genuine love between Sophie and Allen and know that the love existed from both parties.

Admittedly, there is more I'd love to know, to read....but the things I'd love to know more about would have most likely robbed the story of its genuineness as told through journals. However, should a story at some point in the future happen to follow Nattie (as Tillman called her), I would be among the first in line to read it.

I also have to admit that I sometimes cringe a little when books approach "Indians" of these North American Lands in history because of the light (or rather darkness) in which these people are often painted....While the beliefs and the fearfulness of the "white" characters existed toward the tribes based on what they "heard," I don't think any injustices were done in the writing of this novel....but it is with these Midnooskies where much of the mystery still exists, where I'd love to read more.

Thank you so much NetGalley, the publishers, Little Brown and Company, and author, Eowyn Ivey for the honour of receiving an advanced reader's copy of this beautiful novel in exchange for an honest review. I hope I've done it justice and wish you every success as you should have ! ...more

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Sep 05, 2016 Marjorie rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley

This book is about an expedition to Alaska in 1885. It’s loosely based on a real-life expedition taken by Lt. Henry J. Allen but I’m sure the real adventurers didn’t encounter what those in this book did. For those of you who have read this author’s “The Snow Child”, (finalist for the Pulitzer Prize) you’ll know that folklore and mythology play a huge role in her work. While the book feels like a true story since it includes photos, newspaper clippings, drawings, artifacts, diary entries and off ...more

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Jan 27, 2016 Wendy Darling marked it as to-read

Shelves: adult, lb, august, 2016-publication

Love love love this title! I hope it's another snowy book.

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About Eowyn Ivey

Eowyn Ivey's first novel, The Snow Child, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in fiction and an international bestseller. Her newest novel To the Bright Edge of the World will be released August 2, 2016. Eowyn was raised in Alaska and continues to live there with her husband and two daughters.

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“That is excitement. We catch only glimpses, a burst of movement, a flap of wings, yet it is life itself beating at shadow's edge. It is the unfolding of potential; all of what we might experience and see and learn awaits us.” — 5 likes

“What is it that causes us to fall in love? We are met with those first, initial glimpses-- a kind of curiosity, a longing for that which is both familiar and unknown in the other. And then comes the surprise of discovery; we share certain aspirations, certain appreciations, and that which is different excites us. Before each other, we are moved to bravery and we come to reveal more and more of ourselves, and when we do, those very traits that caused us some embarrassment or shame become beautiful in ways we did not understand before, and the entire world becomes more beautiful for it. There are, too, those intimate and nearly primitive stirrings, the scent of the neck, the delicious tremble of skin and breath. Yet for all their pleasures, they are as tenuous as light and air, and demand no fidelity.
And then there is this: Does not love depend on some belief in the future, some expectation beyond the delight of the moment? We fall in love because we imagine a certain life together. We will marry. We will laugh and dance together. We will have children.
When expectation falls to ruins, what is there left for love?” — 2 likes

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