Ordering Books

Books

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NOTE: The titles below are linked to PayPal for purchase via PayPal or any major credit card. PayPal offers choice and flexibility when sending payments, and provides free Purchase Protection. To order via check or money order mail to Northern Light Media, 1255 South Ridgecrest Rd., Wasilla, Alaska 99623. Many more books are available at this website, and all are available through any bookstore. 

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The Greatest Fish Ever Caught – Alaska Fishing Tales

Award-winning writer Lew Freedman shares Alaska fishing tales with wit and humor in this collection of true stories about fishing in the Last Frontier. From salmon to halibut to trophy rainbow trout, with side trips for shrimp, clams, and an octopus (!), Lew shares dozens of adventurous fishing trips across the Great Land. 6″ x 9″ format, 266 pages, ISBN 979-8884786264, published in March, 2024. $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

Front cover

The History of Women’s Professional Bronc Riding 1904-1940

This book by Jody Ellen Meanus shares the profiles and photographs of more than thirty champion women bronc riders who made history in the early days of rodeo. 180 pages, full color, indexed, with more than 120 photographs. Bibliography, Resources, Indexed. ISBN 979-8870015576. Available from Northern Light Media for $39.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$44.95

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail

Interviews with some of the race’s most interesting and compelling competitors sharing their adventures on the Iditarod Trail. Published in December, 2023. 292 pages, 6′ x 9″ b/w format, includes photos, map, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 979-8871190364 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

The Hope 91 Sled Dog Race

A historic race from Nome, Alaska to Anadyr, Chukotka, Russia, a testament to the courage and vision of a handful of Alaskans, and their counterparts across the Bering Strait, who saw the value in building a bridge between their countries via a month-long 1,200-mile sled dog race across some of the wildest lands on Earth. Published in 2023. 228 pages, 6” x 9” format, full color on premium paper, indexed, with dozens of color and b/w photos. ISBN 979-8393817428 $39.95 plus $6.00 shipping.

$45.95

The History of Sled Dogs in North America

With contributions by some of the foremost sled dog historians, this full color elegantly illustrated book traces the history of the great sled dog teams who ran the snow-covered trails of the past, hauling freight, gold, mail, passengers and more, and providing what was often the only access to isolated towns and villages. “….A vast and intriguing read… One heck of a book!” —David James, Anchorage Daily News Published in 2023. Full color on premium paper, 416 pages, 8.5″ x 11″ format, dozens of b/w and color photographs, images, and artwork, extensively annotated, resources, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 979-8365139428 $69.95 plus $6.00 shipping.

$75.95

The Alaska Railroad 1902-1923

The history of the railroad’s construction is a wide-ranging look at Alaska’s growth and development, in which the railroad played a major role;, the history is told through historic documents, photographs, and publications. Published in 2017. 400 pages, over 100 b/w historic photos, maps, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 978-1542329941 $29.95 plus $6.00 shipping.

$35.95

Alaskan Sled Dog Tales

In the Territory of Alaska, dogteams were an integral part of events such as the 1925 Serum Run to Nome, explorations of the land before there were roads or railroads, and the thrilling adventures of legendary mushers such as Leonhard Seppala, Harry Karstens, Jujiro Wada, ‘Iron Man” Johnson, Arthur Treadwell Walden, the ‘Malemute Kid,’ and many others. Stories such as Alaskan mail carrier Eli Smith’s epic trip to Washington, D.C., Alaska Nellie’s daring rescue of a lost mail carrier, the Rev. Samuel Hall Young’s 1913 trip over the Iditarod Trail, and Territorial Judge James Wickersham’s 1901 dogsled trip down the frozen Yukon River from Eagle to Rampart. Dozens of old photographs and postcards showcase the history. Published in 2016. 320 pages, 6′ x 9″ b/w format, includes maps, charts, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 978-0692668474 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

Alaskan Roadhouses: Shelter, Food and Lodging Along Alaska’s Roads and Trails

This book shares the history, photographs, maps, artwork, and articles about these iconic Alaskan structures through the adventurous stories of Alaska’s early travelers. With photos and excepts from books, newspapers and magazine articles from the turn of the century, exciting tales of the roadhouses are shared Published in 2016. 284 pages, over 100 black/white photographs, 6″ x 9″ format. ISBN 978-1517785635 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

“I Wish You Could Come Too,” The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White

A first-hand look at life aboard a revenue cutter during Alaska’s formative early years. The ships of the U.S. Treasury Department’s Revenue-Cutter Service patrolled the waters of the Bering Sea, the coast of Alaska, and the Yukon River, and for several of those voyages a bright and engaging young physician, Dr. James Taylor White, served aboard and recorded his adventurous work in personal correspondence and journals. Published in 2021. 412 pages, over 45 photographs, images, and maps. 6″ x 9″ b/w format, extensively annotated, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 979-8488207240 $29.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$34.95

Northern Journey

In “Northern Journey” Lew tells the stories behind the adventures which became his books and articles, and he shares tales of learning the language of northerners, racing on snowshoes, facing down moose, engaging in polar bear swims, and noting that the river ice under his 5,000-pound taxi is very close to breaking up. “Northern Journey, A Report from the Frontier,” by Lew Freedman. Published by Northern Light Media in 2023. 238 pages, 6″ x 9″ format, more than two dozen photos. ISBN 979-8373238281 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

“A Mighty Nice Place,” The 1935 Matanuska Colony Project

In the spring of 1935 the U.S. government took a direct hand in the future of Alaska when it offered 203 Depression-distraught farm families in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin an opportunity to begin again in a far-off land, with government financing and support. The Matanuska Colony Project was part of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal for America, an audacious plan to build a government-sponsored farming community in Alaska’s Matanuska Valley. Published in 2016. 276 pages, 120 photos, 6″ x 9″ b/w format. ISBN 978-1539698951 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

The All Alaska Sweepstakes

The All Alaska Sweepstakes, the race that made ‘Scotty’ Allan and Leonhard Seppala famous, is the oldest organized distance sled dog race in the world, with records kept by the Nome Kennel Club dating back to the first race in 1908. This book traces its gold rush roots and details the 2008 centennial run for the richest purse ever offered for a sled dog race: $100,000.00 winner-take-all! Published in 2013. 160 pages, over 350 photos. Full color, 8.5″x 11″ format. ISBN 978-0-9843977-0-9 $29.95 plus $5.00 shipping

$34.95

The First Iditarod

The story of the first 1,000-mile race from Anchorage to Nome in 1973, told mostly in the verbatim words of the intrepid mushers who made that very first journey. On that cold morning in March, 1973, thirty-six mushers stood at the starting line in Anchorage, Alaska, looking over the backs of their teams and down the trail toward Nome, over 1,000 miles away. They were on their way to making history. Published in 2019. 200 pages. 6″ x 9″ format, b/w illustrations, bibliography, resources, indexed. ISBN 978-0984397761 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

The Matanuska Colony Barns

In 1935 the U.S. Government transported 200 families from the Great Depression-stricken midwest to a valley of unparalleled beauty in Alaska, where they were given the chance to begin new lives as part of a federally-funded social experiment, the Matanuska Colony Project. As part of each family’s farmstead, a magnificent barn was raised, a sturdy square structure 32′ by 32′ and soaring 32′ high. Today these Colony barns are an iconic reminder of what has been called the last great pioneering adventure in America. Published in 2013. 140 pages, full color. Includes Colonist families listing, maps, bibliography, resources, indexed. ISBN 978-0-9843977-4-7 $29.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$34.95

The Yukon Quest Trail

The Yukon Quest Trail takes readers checkpoint by checkpoint from Fairbanks to Whitehorse, an extraordinary journey in which the author shares details of the trail, along with the incredible history of both the race and the wild and beautiful land it crosses. Over 180 full-color photographs, and Trail Notes for Mushers, by two-time Yukon Quest Champion John Schandelmeier. The Yukon Quest Trail: 1,000 Miles Across Northern Alaska and the Yukon Territory, text and photographs by Helen Hegener, additional photos by Eric Vercammen and Scott Chesney; with Trail Notes for Mushers, by two-time Yukon Quest Champion John Schandelmeier. Published in December, 2014 by Northern Light Media. 151 pages, 8.5″ x 11″ full color format, bibliography, maps, indexed. $29.00, plus $5.00 for First Class shipping.

$34.00

Trailing and Camping in Alaska, 1898-1909

Written in 1909 by Addison M. Powell, an adventurer, prospector, hunter, and a former guide for Captain William R. Abercrombie’s 1898 Copper River Exploring Expedition, one of three military expeditions organized under the direction of the Secretary of War with directives for exploring the interior of the new territory of Alaska. Originally published in 1909. 300 pages, 30 b/w photos, published by Northern Light Media in 2018. ISBN 978-1727274264 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95



Posted in Alaska History, Alaska Railroad, Book Reviews, Books, Colony Barns, Explorers, Gold Rush History, Iditarod, Matanuska Colony, Matanuska Valley, Roadhouses, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races, Yukon Quest | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Northern Light Media Sites

Over the past 15 years I have built multiple websites to support the books I have published, utilizing the WordPress platform to share chapters, excerpts, photographs, documents, research notes and more, and the network of sites under the Northern Light Media banner has been a valuable asset to my company. One recurring problem with this, however, has been the WordPress-placed ads on the sites which I’ve created under their free terms. The cost for the most basic plan is almost $50/year, which would be reasonable enough if I wasn’t trying to pay for more than a dozen sites. And if I want to do things like share videos, sell books, and share to social media automatically, the price doubles. So I’m switching horses.

I have been impressed with the SubStack platform from the beginning. Founded in 2017 and headquartered in San Francisco, SubStack is an American online platform that allows writers to send digital newsletters directly to subscribers, and supports those newsletters with online publishing and design infrastructure. My first venture into the SubStack world was with an email newsletter for my Alaskan History Magazine in December, 2020, and the entire content of the magazine is still online in the archives of my Northern Light Media SubStack site: [ https://northernlightmedia.substack.com ]

My second SubStack site (above) was for my book The History of Sled Dogs in North America (Northern Light Media, 2023), which can be accessed here: [ https://historyofsleddogs.substack.com ]

Over the past few days I’ve switched sites for The Hope ’91 Sled Dog Race (above) [ https://hope91.substack.com ], and over the coming days and weeks I’ll be building SubStack sites for many more of my books. Some will include newsletters for updates, but most will not, being simply informational sites with photos and research from the books, reviews and comments and ordering details. Either way, I trust the new sites will provide an excellent ad-free online platform for each of my books.

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Reviewed: Dr. Stein’s Book

I was delighted to see my July/August issue of Alaska Magazine included this splendid review of the book I published in 2021, “I Wish You Could Come Too: The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White,” by the late Dr. Gary C. Stein.

Reviewer David A. James explains who Dr. White was, a physician aboard the Revenue Cutter Bear, and he details the importance of the journals Dr. White kept during some of Alaska’s key historic events, noting the book is “….a capstone to Stein’s career and an invaluable resource for better understanding daily life in Alaska prior to, and during, the Gold Rush.”

At the Alaska Historical Society’s annual awards recognizing accomplishments in history last year, the late professor Gary C. Stein was recognized for his work as an Alaska historian in the 1970s and 80s and for his service as a past Alaska Historical Society president.

This book was the result of Dr. Stein’s four decades of research through Dr. White’s diaries, correspondence, scrapbooks, photographs, and natural history and ethnological collections located in various archives, museums and cemeteries in Alaska, Washington State, California, and Washington, D.C.

Working with Dr. Stein on this book was one of the highlights of my publishing career, and I miss his notes and emails, but even more, I wish he could have seen the positively glowing reviews his book has been garnering since publication, like David’s current review for Alaska Magazine. David also reviewed the book last fall for the Anchorage Daily News, and that review (and others) can be accessed from my website page for the book.


Order the book:

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The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White

“I Wish You Could Come Too,” The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White, by Gary C. Stein. $29.95 plus $6.00 shipping from Northern Light Media. 412 pages, over 45 photographs, images, and maps. 6″ x 9″ b/w format, extensively annotated, bibliography, indexed.

$35.95



Posted in Alaska History, Book Reviews, Books, Gold Rush History, News & Information | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

ARR’s 100th Anniversary

Bartlett Glacier and the railroad trestle at Mile 47, in the Kenai Mountains north of Seward.

2023 is the 100th Anniversary of the opening of the Alaska Railroad, whose 500-mile-long tracks run from the seaport town of Seward, on the Kenai Peninsula, to Fairbanks, the Golden Heart of Alaska. Along the way they cross two formidable mountain ranges, several broad and daunting rivers, and numerous deep gorges and canyons. The rails wind along the tidewater edge of Turnagain Arm, past Bartlett and Spencer Glaciers, and skirt the highest point on the North American continent, the Great One, Denali.

Work train crossing the bridge over the Knik River, April 12, 1916.

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923, subtitled Blazing an Iron Trail Across The Last Frontier, shares the compelling story of the construction of the Alaska Railroad and its predecessors, from 1902, when John Ballaine built the Alaska Central Railroad; through 1923, when President Warren G. Harding drove the Alaska Railroad’s ceremonial Golden Spike in Nenana. This 400-page book is a wide-ranging look at Alaska’s growth and development, and the many ways in which the railroad played a major role. 

A website for the book, by Northern Light Media. ~•~



Alaska Railroad

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923, Blazing an Iron Trail Across The Last Frontier, by Helen Hegener, published in May, 2017 by Northern Light Media. 400 pages, over 100 b/w historic photos, maps, bibliography, indexed. The book can be ordered for $24.95 plus $5.00 for First Class postage.

$29.95



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A News Spot about Hope ’91

The book about the Hope ‘91 sled dog race is in the final stages, the proofing copies are next, and after both Jon and I have had time to thoroughly proofread the book, I’ll make any changes or corrections we decide on and then send the book for final printing! 

The story of this historic race from Nome, Alaska to Anadyr, Chukotka, Russia is a testament to the courage and vision of a handful of Alaskans, and their counterparts across the Bering Strait, who saw the value in building a bridge between their countries via a month-long 1,200-mile sled dog race across some of the wildest lands on Earth. They brought together mushers from Alaska, Canada, Norway, Switzerland, Japan and Chukotka, in an effort to share the skills and knowledge of long distance sled dog racing. Along the way they shared friendships, faced unimaginable perils, and inspired a renewed interest in the ancient sled dog breeding traditions.

Yesterday Jon and I spent a few hours in his studio with Emmy award winning news photographer Eric Sowl of KTUU, for a program about the book and the history of the race which will air in a couple of weeks. I’ll share that link here when it’s available. UPDATE: you can watch it on the KTUU website!

Jon and I are both delighted that this book has come together so smoothly, and we think it will be a great addition to the history of sled dog races, as well as an interesting and informative look at our neighboring country across the Bering Strait. 

The finished book is 228 pages, 6” x 9” format, full color on premium paper, indexed, with dozens of color and b/w photos, and the price is $39.95 plus $6.50 postage for shipping.


The Hope ’91 Sled Dog Race

$39.95 plus $6.50 postage, for a total of $46.45. Orders will be processed within 48 hours of ordering, and books will arrive in 10 to 12 days.

$46.45


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1991 Hope / Надежда Race

From Nome, Alaska to Anadyr, Russia

Jon Van Zyle’s 1991 poster for the Hope Race.

Since December my research and writing has been focused on the historic 1991 Hope Race from Nome, Alaska, to Anadyr, Russia. The genesis of this book came about during a visit to the Alaskan artist Jon Van Zyle in December, when I commented on an unusual sled displayed on the ceiling of his studio. That led to stories of the race, which led to pulling out a photo album, which led to an hour or more of poring over the photos, more stories, more artifacts from the adventures, and now, a few weeks later, Jon and I are working together on this book.

Jon was one of three people who officially co-chaired the race, the others being Leo Rasmussen from Nome, and Jerry Tokar from Anchorage. As a Race Judge, Jon was the only one of the three who physically accompanied the eight mushers from four countries who competed in the race, along with race Marshal Earl Norris, Race Judge Barbara Moore, Race Veterinarian Jim Leach, official photographer Frank Flavin, and a couple of other people. The race route had the mushers leaving Nome by dog team and traveling to Teller and Wales, Alaska. From Wales they loaded their teams into big orange Russian helicopters for a flight across the Bering Strait to Uelen, and then continued by dogsled through many small villages, through the larger seaport settlement of Provideniya, and finally to Anadyr, the easternmost town in Russia. The total distance was between 1,000 to 1,200 miles.

The mushers in the 1991 race were Scott Cameron (Palmer, Alaska), Nicolai Ettyne (Neshkan, USSR), Kazuo Kojima (Tokyo, Japan), Kate Persons (Sikusuilaq Springs, Alaska), Ketil Reitan (Kaktovik, Alaska), Mary Shields (Fairbanks, Alaska), Peter Thomann (Willow, Alaska), and Frank Turner (Pelly Crossing, Yukon Territory, Canada). Seven Russian mushers also took part in the race.

A photograph of a Russian musher which Jon shared on Facebook.

Jon shared this commentary and announcement of the book project on Facebook in January:

“We sent the invitations to various mushers who would be willing to participate in a ”race ” that was not a race,” but a learning experience for the Chukchi …The Chukchi have driven dog teams for thousands of years, and certainly know how to travel, or hunt, etc. with them … But at that time, they did not understand the ”in’s and outs” of long distant racing … As you know, traveling and racing are two different things … Also, the Olympics were thinking about including dog races in the winter Olympics ( a spectator sport ), as it was in the 1930’s … and I’m sure the Russians had alternative plans to learn the sport from us to win the Olympics … We set the race up for the Chukchi mushers, as a ” learn how to do this, ” (learn feeding, learn conserving dogs, learn ”setting up ” a dog team, etc. etc. ) …and then at two or three checkpoints before the finish, then start ”racing ” … It worked well … Especially in the feeding of their dog teams … Proven by the race results at the finish line … And that the Hope Race is still active, ( albeit shorter ) but it still continues … which is a nice legacy for us all ….”

A photograph Jon shared on Facebook with his post.

Jon has presented me with an incredible array of paperwork, booklets, maps, photographs, statements, news releases, and his personal trail journal for the race, and this is only the beginning of my research. I am looking forward to the journey ahead as I bring this book into print. Those who have followed my work for a few years will know that I have taken on some major subjects in my research, writing, and publishing, but I honestly believe this book about the inaugural Hope/Nadezhda Race will be one of the most historically important, engaging, and enjoyable!


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Alaska & The Klondike

Early Writings and Historic Photographs

“I was so fortunate as to see Anchorage in the stump, tent, and shack stage, though it was growing marvelously fast. I give you my notes just as I penned them when I was on the spot, seeing how Uncle Sam’s engineers and executives were putting through their big job.” —Frank Carpenter, in Alaska: Our Northern Wonderland, 1923

Alaska & the Klondike, Early Writings and Historic Photographs, compiled and edited by Helen Hegener, is an anthology of selected writings by early explorers and travelers in Alaska and the Yukon Territory of Canada. Charting an unknown country, exploring a wondrous land, searching for gold, delivering freight and mail beyond where any roads would reach, these were the exciting subjects of books which became northland classics, with titles such as Ten Thousand Miles with  Dog Sled, Along Alaska’s Great River, and The Land of Tomorrow. Wonderful photographs accompany the often colorful writings of Frederick Schwatka, Hudson Stuck, Robert Service, Josiah Edward Spurr, and many others as they tell of adventure, explorations, fortunes won and lost, and the magnificent promise of our great northern lands. Read the words of those early travelers who accepted the chalenge of the North and left an indelible mark in their writing of it. 

An excerpt from The Land of Nome: A Narrative Sketch of the Rush to our Bering Sea Gold-Fields, the Country, Its Mines and Its People, and the History of a Great Conspiracy, by Lanier McKee, 1900-1901. “Hundreds were living in tents upon the beach, thanks to the clemency of the weather. Within a very short distance from our camp, with their freight piled about, were the ‘syndicate,’ and quite unenthusiastic. There was defection in their camp. Actually, the “syndicate” were selling out, and without a struggle. Several of its members very soon bade us farewell, and pulled out for what they thought the ‘real thing’—quartz-mines in Oregon. And yet some of the mines on Anvil Creek even then, and with only a few men shoveling the pay dirt into the sluice-boxes, were turning out from ten to fifteen thousand dollars a day. To be sure, this was for the very few only, but, at the same time, it went to prove that the country was not a fraud. Even the dirt in those miserable Nome streets contained ‘colors,’ or small particles of gold; and it is an incongruous thought that, of all the cities of the world, Nome City, as it is called, most nearly approaches the apocalyptic condition of having its streets paved with gold!”

Selected excerpts are from the following books:

• Golden Alaska, by Ernest Ingersoll
• The Land of Tomorrow, by William B. Stephenson, Jr.
• The Spell of the Yukon & Other Verses, by Robert Service
• The Ascent of Denali, by Hudson Stuck
• From Paris to New York by Land, by Harry DeWindt
• Through the Yukon Gold Diggings, by Josiah Edward Spurr
• A Woman Who Went––To Alaska, by May Kellogg Sullivan
• The Land of Nome, by Lanier McKee
• Ten Thousand Miles with a Dog Sled, by Hudson Stuck
• Along Alaska’s Great River, by Frederick Schwatka
• Alaska: Our Northern Wonderland, by Frank Carpenter
• A Dog-Puncher on the Yukon, by Arthur Treadwell Walden


Alaska & the Klondike: Early Writings and Historic Photographs

“Alaska & the Klondike: Early Writings and Historic Photographs,” compiled and edited by Helen Hegener, published in May, 2018 by Northern Light Media. 320 pages, over 100 b/w photos, ISBN-13: 978-1717401991. $24.95 plus $5.00 First Class shipping. Also available as an eBook.

$29.95


Posted in Alaska History, Books, Explorers, Gold Rush History, Kindle eBooks, News & Information, photographs | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Northern Journey

Northern Journey: A Report from the Frontier is a new book from Northern Light Media by award-winning author Lew Freedman. A familiar name to most Alaskan readers, the long-time journalist and author has written more than 100 books, and he has received more than 300 journalism awards for his wide-ranging books and articles on everything from mountaineering to hockey, from rodeo to stock car racing, and from the history of baseball to long-distance sled dog races.

Now Lew has written a memoir of his northern travels, his adventures, his hits and his near-misses, and the infamous ones that got away on Alaska’s Kenai River. Beginning with his move to Alaska in 1984 with a wife and a young daughter, Lew became the sports editor for the Anchorage Daily News at a time when the legendary greats were racing the Iditarod, that 1,000-mile trek from Anchorage to Nome via dog team which captivates Alaskans–and much of the rest of the world–for two weeks every March. Lew wrote books about some of the sport’s greatest heroes, mushers such as George Attla, Joe Redington Sr., Dick Mackey, DeeDee Jonrowe, and Mike Williams Sr.; and he profiled dozens more in several books about the Last Great Race on Earth.

Lew also wrote books with the noted adventurer and explorer Bradford Washburn, and co-authored an autobiography with Barbara Washburn, the first woman to climb Denali (then Mount McKinley) in 1947. He wrote books about Vernon Tejas, the first man to ascend Mount McKinley alone in winter; Lowell Thomas, Jr.’s adventures around the world; the 1964 Alaska earthquake, and fishing Alaskan rivers such as the legendary Kenai, in pursuit of the great king salmon. 

In Northern Journey Lew tells the stories behind the adventures which became his award-winning books and articles, and he gives his readers an inside angle on what Alaskans do to land the Big Ones, how to survive the sub-zero temperatures, what it’s like to stand under the shimmering northern lights, and how northerners entertain themselves during the long winter nights (try ear-pulling and knuckle-hopping). He shares tales of learning the language of northerners, racing on snowshoes, facing down moose, engaging in polar bear swims, and noting that the river ice under his 5,000-pound taxi is very close to breaking up. 

Venturing further afield in the North, Lew tells of adventures to Greenland, Iceland, the Northwest Territories, and in various provinces of Canada, leaving his readers with memorable descriptions of each place and the people who live there. 


nojourney-cover-final

Northern Journey

In Northern Journey Lew Freedman tells the stories behind the adventures which became his award-winning books and articles. 238 pages, 6″ x 9″ format, more than two dozen b/w photos. $24.95 plus $4.50 shipping. Available from Northern Light Media, Amazon, or via any bookstore with ISBN no. 9798373238281.

$29.45


Posted in Alaska History, Book Reviews, Books, Explorers, Iditarod, News & Information, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

50 Years of Iditarod Adventures

“If you’re a race fan, you need this book. Kudos to Freedman for putting together his love and extensive knowledge of the sport together in such a readable, usable fashion.” -June Price, Sunhusky Reviews, on Amazon

Author Lew Freedman reported on the Iditarod during its heyday as the sports editor of one of Alaska’s major newspapers, and now he shares the details of fifty years of race history, with insightful essays on each year’s race to Nome!

Complete records of every race, including mushers who scratched or were withdrawn; each award winner and every special presentation; biographies of mushers who became household names and stories of the families who contributed to make the Iditarod what it is today, a worldwide phenomenon and The Last Great Race on Earth.

The cover art is by Alaskan artist Jon Van Zyle, a two-time Iditarod finisher (1976, 1979), a member of the Iditarod Hall of Fame, and the Official Artist of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

50 Years of Iditarod Adventures

“50 Years of Iditarod Adventures, The First Fifty Years of the Last Great Race,” by Lew Freedman. Published in February, 2022 by Northern Light Media. 310 pages, over 80 b/w photos, $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping. Also available from Amazon.

$29.95

Amazon Review:

June Price

5.0 out of 5 stars Top notch overview of 50 years of Iditarod adventure

Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2022

Having moderated a couple Iditarod related online groups in the past, I can attest to the fact that author Lew Freedman has managed to answer most of the FAQs that pop up, well, frequently. It will be a handy, easy to read resource for fans. Lots of lists of who ran/won/placed/won awards and more. Freedman has also taken a look at some of the memorable characters of the sled dog race, including families who have become a part of race lore, the Mackey and Seavey families. Lots of photos, too, including I should probably admit, one of my own, and maps. If you’re a race fan, you need this book. Kudos to Freedman for putting together his love and extensive knowledge of the sport together in such a readable, usable fashion.

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The History of Sled Dogs

The History of Sled Dogs in North America: From the Bering Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, by Helen Hegener and several contributing writers


Now available to order, The History of Sled Dogs in North America, by Helen Hegener and several contributing writers, showcases the history of the working sled dogs which helped shape the future of the North American continent.

This full-color, elegantly illustrated book features historic photographs, illustrations, and beautiful art, such as the splendid “Northwoods Journey” on the cover, by Colorado artist Veryl Goodnight. This one-of-a-kind book will become a landmark reference on the interdependence of men and dogs, from their first steps along the shores of the Bering Sea to the exciting races of New England and eastern Canada in the 1930s.

Included are stories of the great fur trapping and trading empires of the Hudson’s Bay Company, the life-saving Serum Run to Nome in 1925, the great teams of the Arctic explorers, the sled dog teams who served in the military, the intrepid mushers who drove their dog teams thousands of miles for fun and profit, the sled dogs of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and the dog teams which delivered the mail from Maine to California and to the farthest reaches of the North! 


The History of Sled Dogs in North America

Softcover paperback printed in full color on premium stock paper, 416 pages, 8.5″ x 11″ format, dozens of b/w and color photographs, images, and artwork, extensively annotated, resources, bibliography, indexed. Published by Northern Light Media. $69.95 plus $6.50 shipping and handling.

$76.45


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