What's a vacation without a good book to read? When vacationing in Alaska, it might be a good idea to do some reading before arriving in the Great Land.
Lynn Dixon, co-owner of Cook Inlet Book Co. in downtown Anchorage, has some suggestions for before-, during- and after-vacation reading.
And Dixon should know. She has lived in Alaska since the early 1950s, and her bookstore has more than 5,000 titles that are considered Alaska books.
"For the people who live here, we don't think of ourselves as in an exotic location," Dixon said. "But for people coming to Alaska, it really is an exotic place. We're far away, almost foreign and adventurous."
Dixon said it's difficult to select books for others to read -- "everyone has their own taste." But there are many books she always recommends to shoppers in her store at 415 W. Fifth Ave.
Before arriving in Alaska
A little research before arriving in Alaska is a good idea. Some of the reading material Dixon suggests:
• "The Milepost" (edited by Kris Valencia Graef): "It's the best thing you can have if you're doing anything in Alaska."
• "Lonely Planet Alaska" (Jim Dufresne): "It's got great background information on Alaska. It has a lot of hints for travelers."
• "City Smart Guidebook Anchorage" (Donna Freedman): "It has good Anchorage information by someone who lives here."
• "The Last New Land" (edited by Wayne Mergler): "Fiction, nonfiction, really it has a taste of all things Alaska. It has Robert Service to Native legends."
Books to read in Alaska
• "Two Old Women: An Alaska Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival" (Velma Wallis): "It's a really good Athabaskan legend."
• "Tisha: The Story of a Young Teacher in the Alaska Wilderness" (Robert Specht): "It's a good book about a teacher out in the Bush."
• "Working on the Edge" (Spike Walker): "It's hard to put this one down. It's been around for a little while, but it is an excellent book about king crab fishing."
• "One Man's Wilderness: An Alaskan Odyssey" (Sam Keith, Richard Proenneke): "It's a look at homesteading. A lot of people visiting Alaska would like to know about homesteading. This is a good book for that."
• "Into the Wild" (Jon Krakauer): "It's a good book about adventure in Alaska."
• "Johnny's Girl: A Daughter's Memoir of Growing Up in Alaska's Underworld" (Kim Rich): "This isn't your average book. It shows the real underworld of Anchorage."
• "Wilderness: A Journey of Quiet Adventure in Alaska" (Rockwell Kent): "He spent a winter on Fox Island down by Seward, and this tells that story. It's a beautifully done book."
• "The Highway Angler" (Gunnar Pedersen): "This really is THE book for anyone fishing in Alaska."
Books to take home
• "Denali: A Literary Anthology" (edited by Bill Sherwonit): "The book gives views on wildlife and ecology. It's not just a 'How I climbed Denali' book."
• "Alaska" (Art Wolfe, Nick Jans): "There are lots of these 'picture books.' This is personally my favorite. It just blows me away."
• "When Grandma Visited Alaska" (Bernd and Susan Richter): "This is very popular. Grandparents love to take these back home with them."
• "The Thousand Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians" (Brian Garfield, Terrence Cole): "This is a look at Alaska's history from a different perspective. It's good war history."
