Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Charles Scribners Sons (1986), Hardcover, 464 pages
Description
This book is an account of the history, ecology, and mystique of the arctic region. The author offers a thorough examination of this obscure world, its terrain, its wildlife, its history of Eskimo natives and intrepid explorers who have arrived on their icy shores. But what turns this marvelous work of natural history into a breathtaking study of profound originality is his unique meditation on how the landscape can shape our imagination, desires, and dreams. Its prose as hauntingly pure as the land it describes, and is nothing less than an indelible classic of modern literature.
User reviews
LibraryThing member wandering_star
This is a book about every aspect of the Arctic - the wildlife, the people who live there, and what it has meant to explorers and visitors through the ages. Its key message is that we must not dismiss what we don't understand. The Arctic is not a barren, primitive wilderness. Lopez opens our eyes
This book is also an important work of ecology - written 20 years ago, it focuses on the threat from industrial development, rather than from climate change, but it is all the more relevant today now that the whole habitat is under threat. Lopez is hoping to persuade his readers that humanity can, if it chooses, stop the decline - we have "the intelligence to grasp what is happening, the composure not to be intimidated by its complexity, and the courage to take steps that may bear no fruit in our lifetimes".
I found this book extremely interesting, and full of fascinating details. It's not perfect - Lopez clearly knows his stuff, but sometimes there is too much detail - for example, on the history of arctic exploration. And some of the more mystical elements didn't work for me (although I see that one of the other reviewers much preferred these to the detailed descriptions of arctic animals, which I loved). However, like the landscape it portrays, the book rewards perseverence.
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to all sorts of things which are taking place, from the incredible adaptations of the animals which live there, the culture and history of the indigenous population, and the way all these fit together. He also cleverly analyses the way that we perceive places which are so alien to us - through a whole spectrum of preconceptions and prejudices ("we insist on living today in much shorter spans of time. We become exasperated when the lives of animals unfold in ways inconvenient to our schedules - when they sit and do 'nothing'").This book is also an important work of ecology - written 20 years ago, it focuses on the threat from industrial development, rather than from climate change, but it is all the more relevant today now that the whole habitat is under threat. Lopez is hoping to persuade his readers that humanity can, if it chooses, stop the decline - we have "the intelligence to grasp what is happening, the composure not to be intimidated by its complexity, and the courage to take steps that may bear no fruit in our lifetimes".
I found this book extremely interesting, and full of fascinating details. It's not perfect - Lopez clearly knows his stuff, but sometimes there is too much detail - for example, on the history of arctic exploration. And some of the more mystical elements didn't work for me (although I see that one of the other reviewers much preferred these to the detailed descriptions of arctic animals, which I loved). However, like the landscape it portrays, the book rewards perseverence.
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LibraryThing member Paulagraph
A classic, published in 1986, although I've managed to not read it until now. That's my loss, since Lopez's prose is astonishing, both in its scientific & journalistic precision & in its philosophical, ethical lyricism. In fact, his musings constitute a profoundly useful ethics of respect toward &
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value-recognition of both land & life in the Arctic (& by extrapolation, all places, species & cultures on Earth). One that assumes the dignity of each being within an ultimately unpossessable landscape. I found Lopez's account of the history of European exploration, mapping & "discovery" less compelling than his accounts of signature species & cultures in the Arctic, all the while recognizing its utility. For it was these explorers who for the most part aimed to control, to possess & profit from rather than to live with or in the Far North. Almost 30 years after the publication of Arctic Dreams, we know the situation to be even more dire than Lopez could envisage in the 1980s: Climate Change is rapidly warming & melting while radically changing habitats of the North, to the point that CC rather than overhunting might spell doom for species like the Polar Bear or transform them into archaic zoo species; and drilling for oil continues(already in the 80s the Alaskan Oil Pipeline was in place)with proposed drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge at high risk of becoming reality. Show Less
LibraryThing member bell7
This is a fascinating look at the Arctic, with each chapter thematically taking on one topic: polar bears, narwhals, ice and light, the history of polar exploration, and much more. Throughout, Lopez riffs on the theme of landscape, and our relationship with the land itself shaping us and shaping
I haven't read many books that would fit into this category, if I can call it a category, of philosophical nature writing. The closest authors I can think of - and it's a stretch thematically on the one hand and stylistically on the other - are Henry David Thoreau and E.B. White. But if you like thoughtful writing, history, travel and nature, it's definitely worth a try. Just don't expect to read it very fast, as his dense style will take some getting used to.
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how we view it.I haven't read many books that would fit into this category, if I can call it a category, of philosophical nature writing. The closest authors I can think of - and it's a stretch thematically on the one hand and stylistically on the other - are Henry David Thoreau and E.B. White. But if you like thoughtful writing, history, travel and nature, it's definitely worth a try. Just don't expect to read it very fast, as his dense style will take some getting used to.
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LibraryThing member TomCook.cff
One of the best pieces of nature writing I have read. A comprehensive, evocative, engaging, and personal story of a place..
LibraryThing member silentq
The author loves the arctic, really really loves it. This book is basically a love letter to the top of the world. :) I liked the first chapters, each one focusing on a specific species and how it interacts with the land, moving across it, living on it. Lopez emphasises that you can't fight the
I learned a lot about the native people who have lived in the far north, as well as trivia about many of the animals that make the arctic regions their home.
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land and the climate, you have to accept it, live with it, endure it. The book gets a bit weaker as he talks about the European experience of exploration, though the wealth of detail is probably what's making it drier than his personal experiences. It's still fascinating though, and I really enjoyed it.I learned a lot about the native people who have lived in the far north, as well as trivia about many of the animals that make the arctic regions their home.
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LibraryThing member MiaCulpa
Many reviewers have opined about how lyrical “Arctic Dreams” is and I have to agree; Lopez has the soul of a poet as he describes the Arctic’s beauty and terror and his own feelings about the points north of 66° 33'N. However I also found “Arctic Dreams” an easy book to put down; it took
Still, there were good passages in “Arctic Dreams”, mainly on the history of Arctic exploration and one can only shiver in appreciation of the ordeal those who wintered in the Arctic faced. The maps at the rear of my copy also came into regular usage as I tried to work out which Godforsaken piece of land some unfortunate explorer got stuck on.
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me about a year to read and as I finished other books, I would take “Arctic Dreams” down from my bookcase and read a few pages before laying it aside to read another. Perhaps I have the soul of an auditor.Still, there were good passages in “Arctic Dreams”, mainly on the history of Arctic exploration and one can only shiver in appreciation of the ordeal those who wintered in the Arctic faced. The maps at the rear of my copy also came into regular usage as I tried to work out which Godforsaken piece of land some unfortunate explorer got stuck on.
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LibraryThing member co_coyote
I've had the opportunity to spend some time in the Arctic, and no one gets the feeling of place so exactly right as Barry Lopez. Perceptive, sensitive, and extraordinary are all words that describe Lopez's essays.
LibraryThing member bethanyinthetaiga
This was a picturesque trip into life in the North American arctic. Lopez discusses the native tradition of focusing on significant time or geographical locations within the individual or community's memory and then utilizes it as a framework for his writing. The chapters focus around a theme, such
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as "narwhal", "views of development" or "light", in which the writer weaves his experiences with historical and scientific data. Overall, an excellent book. Show Less
LibraryThing member Schmerguls
This book won the 1986 National Book Award for nonfiction. And my niece just spent a month on Ellesmere Island. These two facts led me to read the book. There is much about Northern Canda animals (muskox, bears, and narwhal, especially) which is well done but not too interesting to me. There are a
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couple of good chapters on Arctic exploration (better covered in Arctic Grail, by Pierre Berton) and a lot of sometimes impressive philosophizing. The author has a keen empathy for the environment and the Eskimos. The book had its moments. It is the 36th winner of the National Book Award for nonfiction I have read. Show Less
LibraryThing member colinsky
There is a LOT in this book. Having spent a sum total of 3 days above the Arctic Circle, I'd have to say that, based on my experiences, reading this book is possibly the next best thing to going. There are two main sections - one is a very extensive essay on the experiential aspects of the Arctic
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and some fascinating stuff on wildlife. Another is a long reflection on the impact of human beings, both European and indigenous, on the environment. The central theme is that bad things happen when we make no effort to drop our presuppositions when trying to understand foreign terrain. The book closes with a brief description of the attitudes of oilworkers towards the Arctic (it's a wasteland good for nothing but extraction of fossil fuels). Show Less
LibraryThing member aliciamay
This was a non-fiction written rather like a memoir featuring the author’s observations from travels in the Arctic Circle with a combination of historical, biological, anthropological, sociological, philosophical and geological anecdotes peppered throughout. Overall I found it readable, but
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sometimes it got overly scientific and dense – some skimming was done. Each chapter focuses on a different aspect of the Arctic, such as exploration, icebergs or polar bears. I especially liked the chapters focusing on species and reading about interesting aspects of their biology, habitat, and interactions with humans. Did you know there is a fish with a 10 foot unicorn-like horn? It is called the narwhal and really confused some of the earlier Arctic explorers. I would recommend this with the caveats that you should be interested in scientific writing and have plenty of time to read it. Show Less
LibraryThing member janemarieprice
The descriptions of the Arctic presented here are quite beautiful. There is a lot of factual information about species, migration, peoples, and exploration. This is intertwined with the narrative of the author’s experiences which gives a wonderful and comprehensive view of this region.
LibraryThing member JBreedlove
One of the most engrossing books I have ever read. Lopez touched upon many aspects of the Arctic that I was unaware of with a writers eye as well as that of a scientist's. Most of his philosophical insights were just that. He made me want to see these northern islands in person. The only turn-off
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was his bowing. Show Less
LibraryThing member slatta
One of my favorite nonfiction books of all time.
LibraryThing member BraveKelso
An astonishing view of the space, light and ecology of the north by thoughtful and gifted prose writer.
LibraryThing member dypaloh
In his luminous Arctic Dreams, Barry Lopez travels wild country over a span of years, picking up observations, taking up with native peoples, and talking to scientists, industrialists, and others banking on finding something they seek in these polar places. He is active and curious and not shy of
What is staked here are arctic dreams, and for Northern peoples the dreams are being interrupted. Rising temperatures are thinning and melting Arctic ice. Lopez’s book, published in 1986, is not one focused on these changes but I’m struck by how much the risks they bring to wildlife and to “Eskimo” culture call to mind the nightmarish “savssats” he describes: “Late in fall, while narwhals are still feeding deep in a coastal fiord, a band of ice may form in calm water across the fiord’s mouth. The ice sheet may then expand toward the head of the fiord…” The expanding ice sheet grows to exceed the distance a narwhal can travel under ice while sustained by a single breath, so the narwhals are trapped. They cannot get out. There is frenzy.
That is a threat from ice. But as the Arctic warms, leads (picture liquid “savssats,” i.e. channels of water) form and widen ever more readily, marooning polar bears on smaller, more widely separated islands of ice. Attempts to escape floes by crossing the expanding leads become especially deadly to cubs and imperil local hunters too. As Lopez observes about pack ice, “to venture out there on foot is, to put it simply, to court death.”
The rewards of Arctic Dreams are many. The account of explorers’ efforts in the region is not to be missed and by itself would justify the volume, and it is just one part (What were these men seeking? What had they imagined they’d find? What desires were inflamed or satisfied by their journeys?). Barry Lopez has given us a beautiful and inspiring and profound and worrying piece of work.
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gestures of deeply felt appreciation: “I took to bowing on these evening walks. I would bow slightly with my hands in my pockets, toward the birds and the evidence of life in their nests.” He muses, “In a simple bow from the waist…you are able to stake your life, again, in what you dream.” What is staked here are arctic dreams, and for Northern peoples the dreams are being interrupted. Rising temperatures are thinning and melting Arctic ice. Lopez’s book, published in 1986, is not one focused on these changes but I’m struck by how much the risks they bring to wildlife and to “Eskimo” culture call to mind the nightmarish “savssats” he describes: “Late in fall, while narwhals are still feeding deep in a coastal fiord, a band of ice may form in calm water across the fiord’s mouth. The ice sheet may then expand toward the head of the fiord…” The expanding ice sheet grows to exceed the distance a narwhal can travel under ice while sustained by a single breath, so the narwhals are trapped. They cannot get out. There is frenzy.
That is a threat from ice. But as the Arctic warms, leads (picture liquid “savssats,” i.e. channels of water) form and widen ever more readily, marooning polar bears on smaller, more widely separated islands of ice. Attempts to escape floes by crossing the expanding leads become especially deadly to cubs and imperil local hunters too. As Lopez observes about pack ice, “to venture out there on foot is, to put it simply, to court death.”
The rewards of Arctic Dreams are many. The account of explorers’ efforts in the region is not to be missed and by itself would justify the volume, and it is just one part (What were these men seeking? What had they imagined they’d find? What desires were inflamed or satisfied by their journeys?). Barry Lopez has given us a beautiful and inspiring and profound and worrying piece of work.
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LibraryThing member m.belljackson
"There is something of the original creation here."
Written with brilliant foresight in 1986 as a testimonial to beauty, solitude, wisdom, science, and truth, not as the eulogy which has become, Barry Lopes asked the world for the intelligence to preserve The Arctic.
Instead, we refused or ignored
"Arctic warming far faster than thought..."
....well, no, only for those who refused to think, to care, to pay attention, and to have compassion for the land, its animals, birds, plants, and people...
From respectful chapters on animals, treating them with the dignity that most European, Canadian, and American explorers still dispatch with willful cruelty and ignorance,
he leads readers through the formation of sea ice, the plants of a tussock, oceans and tundra, contrasts of temperate, tropical, and Arctic seasons and ecosystems and on into
deep spiritual connections with the earth and universe. Introducing animal chapters with both factual information and personal experiences, the gives each animal > the muskoxen,
the polar bears, and the narwhal
Written with brilliant foresight in 1986 as a testimonial to beauty, solitude, wisdom, science, and truth, not as the eulogy which has become, Barry Lopes asked the world for the intelligence to preserve The Arctic.
Instead, we refused or ignored
Show More
his warnings. Scientists, conservation organizations, concerned citizens and government leaders did not unite, thus the world now has THE WEEK's May 2017 headline:"Arctic warming far faster than thought..."
....well, no, only for those who refused to think, to care, to pay attention, and to have compassion for the land, its animals, birds, plants, and people...
From respectful chapters on animals, treating them with the dignity that most European, Canadian, and American explorers still dispatch with willful cruelty and ignorance,
he leads readers through the formation of sea ice, the plants of a tussock, oceans and tundra, contrasts of temperate, tropical, and Arctic seasons and ecosystems and on into
deep spiritual connections with the earth and universe. Introducing animal chapters with both factual information and personal experiences, the gives each animal > the muskoxen,
the polar bears, and the narwhal
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LibraryThing member Castlelass
Extremely readable and beautifully written nonfiction covering almost every aspect of the arctic. This book contains elements of biology, zoology, botany, archeology, anthropology, ecology, ornithology, geography, oceanography, meteorology, geology, cartography, and more. It includes segments on
Lopez goes beyond technical explanations, offering insight on the human responses to this stark and stunning environment. He covers topics not typically found in a science-based book, such as art, culture, emotion, imagination, spirituality, philosophy, and the capacity for astonishment. He cautions that the extremes of this terrain make it exceedingly susceptible to man-induced catastrophes, and that long-term thinking is needed to ensure we do not destroy it, as it recovers from harm more slowly than a temperate ecosystem. Lopez makes a cogent argument that deep-rooted ideas about seasons, time, space, distance, and light are not applicable to the arctic, and that different ways of thinking about these concepts are needed.
I have read numerous scientific books and I am fascinated by the ability to survive in extreme conditions. This book stands out for its ability to communicate the science involved in understanding the arctic, while simultaneously clarifying the limits of scientific thinking in gaining a true sense of the region. It marries science and sentiment extremely well, though it occasionally drifts into rather esoteric realms. Recommended to those interested in the arctic, environmentalism, nature, science, or the relationship of humans to the natural world.
Memorable passage:
“But the ethereal and timeless power of the land, that union of what is beautiful with what is terrifying, is insistent. It penetrates all cultures, archaic and modern. The land gets inside us; and we must decide one way or another what this means, what we will do about it.”
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muskoxen, polar bears, beluga and bowhead whales, narwhals, seals, walruses, migration patterns, where its people originated and how they live, hunting, ice and snow, the aurora borealis, history of its exploration, and scientific expeditions. It exudes a sense of place, and the author’s love for this land is almost palpable. Lopez goes beyond technical explanations, offering insight on the human responses to this stark and stunning environment. He covers topics not typically found in a science-based book, such as art, culture, emotion, imagination, spirituality, philosophy, and the capacity for astonishment. He cautions that the extremes of this terrain make it exceedingly susceptible to man-induced catastrophes, and that long-term thinking is needed to ensure we do not destroy it, as it recovers from harm more slowly than a temperate ecosystem. Lopez makes a cogent argument that deep-rooted ideas about seasons, time, space, distance, and light are not applicable to the arctic, and that different ways of thinking about these concepts are needed.
I have read numerous scientific books and I am fascinated by the ability to survive in extreme conditions. This book stands out for its ability to communicate the science involved in understanding the arctic, while simultaneously clarifying the limits of scientific thinking in gaining a true sense of the region. It marries science and sentiment extremely well, though it occasionally drifts into rather esoteric realms. Recommended to those interested in the arctic, environmentalism, nature, science, or the relationship of humans to the natural world.
Memorable passage:
“But the ethereal and timeless power of the land, that union of what is beautiful with what is terrifying, is insistent. It penetrates all cultures, archaic and modern. The land gets inside us; and we must decide one way or another what this means, what we will do about it.”
Show Less
LibraryThing member raynim
While I did not like the specific chapters on the 3 species at the beginning of the book and the detailed history on the western exploration of the artic at the end; I loved the 'philosophy of the landscape' that Lopez lays out in the core of the book and it is here where I find the book's
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strength. It is an incredible read. Despite my lack of affinity for the bookend chapters they do supplement the core material well and add more depth to both the natural and human history of the arctic. Show Less
LibraryThing member b.masonjudy
Barry Lopez has a keen eye and his outpouring of love and respect for the Arctic was a moving and lovely account of his, and indeed our, relationship to landscapes. The first chapters look at different animals in the Arctic, such as the polar bear, narwhale and muskox, but Lopez also skillfully
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weaves in philosophical investigation and personal experience. The final two chapters about Arctic exploration did not do such a fantastic job with weaving, I felt a bit like a pinball trying to keep the shifting of dates and names straight, it could have been a bit more linear for ease of understanding because these expeditions did sound intriguing and harrowing. Show Less
LibraryThing member JBGUSA
Excellent with quibbles. Books of this variety are frequently dry. This one was not. If each chapter were cut by 20% it would have been better. But still a great read.
LibraryThing member nbmars
This Non-Fiction National Book Award Winner is not easy to categorize. It is rhapsodic writing, sometimes impressionistic and sometimes full of jaw-dropping facts: part geography (of the Arctic), part natural history, part biology (including background on muskoxen, polar bears, seals, walruses,
I learned a great deal from this book. Clue to reading the book: have on hand several large, detailed maps of the region. Appendix I of the book contains the latitude and longitude of most of the key places mentioned. The story of the search for the Northwest Passage is greatly enhanced by being able to visualize the obstacles.
Some of the items that stood out to me:
In the search for the Northwest Passage (a sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean), all the early explorers had to overwinter in the Arctic. An examination of a good map of the region shows how difficult it was to find a clear path through the area. While there are a number of large islands, there are only narrow bodies of water to get around them. Moreover, many of the apparent passages lead to dead ends or become blocked by large chunks of ice. Early attempts often ended in death and disaster.
Robert Peary, the self-proclaimed first explorer to reach the North Pole (his claims are in doubt), had other personality flaws besides an outsized ego and a tendency to alter facts to suit it. He notoriously mistreated the Inuit, convincing six individuals to come to America with him for “study.” He then deposited them in New York with the American Museum of Natural History as live “specimens” and abandoned them. The Inuit were kept in damp, humid conditions and within a few months, four died of tuberculosis, their remains dissected, and their bones put on display. A fifth managed to gain passage back to Greenland, and only the sixth, a boy of six or seven remained, orphaned and adrift in New York.
Peary was also cruel to his animals. He fed some of his sled dogs to the others in order to minimize the amount of food the expedition had to carry.
Lopez lived among the Eskimos while working on this book, and he discovered that few outsiders had much knowledge of the Eskimo language beyond the conversational, and even less understanding of their culture. He averred it was ''nonsense'' to consider our culture sophisticated and theirs naive.
A notion of community dominates the Eskimo worldview, as expressed by the Eskimo word “Isumataq.” It means one person cannot possibly hold all wisdom. Sharing information, respecting the opinions of others, pooling knowledge, and a respect for nature is the key to their survival.
Contrary to the popular misconception, lemmings don’t commit suicide. They migrate in large groups, and those at the front can get pushed over cliffs by the mobs following behind.
The wildlife in the Arctic is hardy. Polar bears are so well insulated they actually need to get rid of excess heat, which they do by eating snow.
In the Arctic, one often can’t discern if what is visible is a big distant thing or a close small thing. A Swedish explorer had all but completed a written description of two unusually symmetrical valley glaciers making up a a large island, when he discovered what he was looking at was a walrus.
The light in the Arctic is like a living thing, and was a constant source of awe for Lopez. Although the sun virtually disappears for the entire winter, the Northern Lights, a phenomenon caused by ionic reactions in the upper atmosphere, afford some illumination as well as putting on spectacular dynamic displays. When the sun reappears in spring, one is filled with gratitude and pleasure. Lopez noted that the reflection of the sun on the ice constantly shifts, creating scenes ranging from magnificent skyscapes to staggering cathedral-like structures made out of ice. In spite of the monochromatic landscape, nothing stays the same.
Lopez concludes about the Arctic that it is a country of the mind:
“It is easy to underestimate the power of a long-term association with the land, not just with a specific spot but with the span of it in memory and imagination, how it fills, for example, one’s dreams.”
The final line in Mr. Lopez's book, when he is standing alone on an island in the dark, silent Arctic, reads: "I was full of appreciation for all that I had seen." And readers are grateful that he shared it.
(JAB)
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narwhals, caribou, lemmings and numerous sea birds), part Eskimo sociology, part history of polar and Arctic exploration, and part philosophical musings on the relation of man to his environment and the relationship of human hunters to their prey.I learned a great deal from this book. Clue to reading the book: have on hand several large, detailed maps of the region. Appendix I of the book contains the latitude and longitude of most of the key places mentioned. The story of the search for the Northwest Passage is greatly enhanced by being able to visualize the obstacles.
Some of the items that stood out to me:
In the search for the Northwest Passage (a sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean), all the early explorers had to overwinter in the Arctic. An examination of a good map of the region shows how difficult it was to find a clear path through the area. While there are a number of large islands, there are only narrow bodies of water to get around them. Moreover, many of the apparent passages lead to dead ends or become blocked by large chunks of ice. Early attempts often ended in death and disaster.
Robert Peary, the self-proclaimed first explorer to reach the North Pole (his claims are in doubt), had other personality flaws besides an outsized ego and a tendency to alter facts to suit it. He notoriously mistreated the Inuit, convincing six individuals to come to America with him for “study.” He then deposited them in New York with the American Museum of Natural History as live “specimens” and abandoned them. The Inuit were kept in damp, humid conditions and within a few months, four died of tuberculosis, their remains dissected, and their bones put on display. A fifth managed to gain passage back to Greenland, and only the sixth, a boy of six or seven remained, orphaned and adrift in New York.
Peary was also cruel to his animals. He fed some of his sled dogs to the others in order to minimize the amount of food the expedition had to carry.
Lopez lived among the Eskimos while working on this book, and he discovered that few outsiders had much knowledge of the Eskimo language beyond the conversational, and even less understanding of their culture. He averred it was ''nonsense'' to consider our culture sophisticated and theirs naive.
A notion of community dominates the Eskimo worldview, as expressed by the Eskimo word “Isumataq.” It means one person cannot possibly hold all wisdom. Sharing information, respecting the opinions of others, pooling knowledge, and a respect for nature is the key to their survival.
Contrary to the popular misconception, lemmings don’t commit suicide. They migrate in large groups, and those at the front can get pushed over cliffs by the mobs following behind.
The wildlife in the Arctic is hardy. Polar bears are so well insulated they actually need to get rid of excess heat, which they do by eating snow.
In the Arctic, one often can’t discern if what is visible is a big distant thing or a close small thing. A Swedish explorer had all but completed a written description of two unusually symmetrical valley glaciers making up a a large island, when he discovered what he was looking at was a walrus.
The light in the Arctic is like a living thing, and was a constant source of awe for Lopez. Although the sun virtually disappears for the entire winter, the Northern Lights, a phenomenon caused by ionic reactions in the upper atmosphere, afford some illumination as well as putting on spectacular dynamic displays. When the sun reappears in spring, one is filled with gratitude and pleasure. Lopez noted that the reflection of the sun on the ice constantly shifts, creating scenes ranging from magnificent skyscapes to staggering cathedral-like structures made out of ice. In spite of the monochromatic landscape, nothing stays the same.
Lopez concludes about the Arctic that it is a country of the mind:
“It is easy to underestimate the power of a long-term association with the land, not just with a specific spot but with the span of it in memory and imagination, how it fills, for example, one’s dreams.”
The final line in Mr. Lopez's book, when he is standing alone on an island in the dark, silent Arctic, reads: "I was full of appreciation for all that I had seen." And readers are grateful that he shared it.
(JAB)
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LibraryThing member dele2451
An intimate look at the unique polar landscape by a passionate and respectful observer, wanderer, and historian. Just the read to get you through a snowy January in the mountains.
LibraryThing member dragon178
This book is overwhelming. It makes the landscape of the Arctic come to life, with it's focus on the fauna and geography of the tundra.
Arctic Dreams is a kind of prayer. Written with the utmost love and respect for nature, it is Barry Lopez' worship.
Arctic Dreams is a kind of prayer. Written with the utmost love and respect for nature, it is Barry Lopez' worship.
LibraryThing member quondame
There are some really wonderful descriptions of the arctic and Lopez's reactions the land and the fauna and the people both indigenous and interloper. Also a good deal of history.
What there aren't are images which would enhance readers' connections to the material though several non-relevant images
What there aren't are images which would enhance readers' connections to the material though several non-relevant images
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of the author are crammed into the back. Show Less
Subjects
Awards
National Book Award (Finalist — Nonfiction — 1986)
National Book Critics Circle Award (Finalist — General Nonfiction — 1986)
Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award (Winner — 1987)
Oregon Book Awards (Winner — 1987)
Best Fiction for Young Adults (Selection — 1986)
Notable Books List (1986)
Language
Original publication date
1986
Physical description
456 p.; 9.3 inches