30 Days of Me: Day Fourteen

Day 14: A Non-Fictional Book

I love a good autobiography. I'm nosy about people I admire, for one, but I also love to see their writing skills. The less the ghostwriter works the better. Since I'm on a girly kick I'll throw back to a true on-ice love story written by 1988 & 1994 Olympic Pairs Champion Ekatarina Gordeeva entitled My Sergei.

Katia's book is both romantic and tragic as it follows not only the author's life and career but that of her on and off ice partner, Sergei Grinkov, who died suddenly in 1995 at age 28. Published nearly a year after his death, the pain was still raw and it's very evident throughout the pages, yet through it all Katia is able to cherish and celebrate the life their shared, first as coworkers and finally as parents.

Because Katia was born and raised in Russia, there's no doubt that a lot of the stylized part of the writing was done by her ghost writer, EW Swift, who covered figure skating in its hey day for Sports Illustrated. However the story is heartfelt and very much Katia. There are some amazingly sweet moments throughout, and she also dives into the darker parts of the figure skating world - especially during the time she skated for the USSR before Russia's revolution.

Over all it's one of the best autobiographies ever written. I've owned the book since it came out -give or take a year- and even as a junior high student I was moved to tears. I'm so happy Katia and Daria have found happiness and a new chance at family with Ilia and Elizaveta.

30 Days of Me: Day Thirteen

Day 13: A Fictional Book


A friend of mine gave me the Alaskan Quest series of books for my birthday a few years ago. She immediately thought of me when she read them because they were in Alaska. I will admit I was very reluctant to be enthused because I absolutely hate the stereotypical way authors (and tv/film writers) write Alaska. However, I was pleasantly surprised that Author Tracie Peterson took the time to try to understand the Alaskan way of life and thinking.

The series is written by a Christian novelist, and is in the "Christian Romance" genre. Again, not something I am normally into, but I was pleasantly surprised. What struck me most was how the main female character had the true Alaskan spirit - though she was a bit more delicate than I would have wanted. She is able to fend for herself, and I found myself identifying with her over many of her womanly fears.

The story takes place in North West Alaska Coast. North of Nome. It follows the story of adult siblings Jacob and Leah Barringer. Orphaned during the initial gold rush they've now set out on their own, vowing to stay by each other until one marries. Leah is the one having the most trouble as she nears 30 and does not have a husband and family of her own. Then, someone from her past reappears and old feelings come welling back.

Romantic fairytale elements aside the series is good for a variety of reason. You have a bit of mystery, a bit of adventure, and romance, but most importantly it's clean. There are no sex scenes in graphic detail even when it's a married couple, though it's obviously suggested. Later in the series there is a rape, but the author does not shy away from answering the tough questions like "why did God allow this to happen?"

I own the series, and the series before it, as well as Robinson's latest Alaska series. Why? Because she's one of the few authors in this time period that GETS Alaska. It's not Jack London quality, but I don't expect that out of someone who does not live here.

Busy Beaver!

So much has happened that I would love the blog about, but I have been so busy and running around that unless you follow me on facebook or twitter you wouldn't know what was going on. The Census is winding down, I will be laid off a week from tomorrow. I'm not sad about it ending, shoot the paycheck is nice, I'm actually relieved. It's been a long twenty months, but over all I enjoyed it.

A lot of people are asking me what is next. At this point I'm taking it one day at a time. I have, basically, until spring to figure it out (that's when my living arrangement will have to change no matter what) and with my trips that I have planned and paid for it makes it hard to get a job. "Um, yeah, you can hire me, then I'll be gone for a month, and back for a month and then I'm gone again!"

So to make a long post short, I've prayed hard about it and feel God is leading me to take my photography seriously. So I am completely jumping in, with Faith. The website was published this morning, and I'm open for business with sessions set for Sept. 25 and beyond! I am excited and scared all at the same time.

Visit the website here - http://www.photographybyantonia.com/ - more blogging to come, but I think this is enough for now.

I also just joined the Christian group Books for Bloggers, so I'm looking forward to that!

Book Review: The Father I Never Had

Christian Singer-Songwriter and Pastor, Joel Engle's song "The Father I Never Had" is now in book form, it's a fleshing out - if you will - of his autobiographical song. Engle leaves no stone untouched in this unguarded accounting of his life and testimony. Gone is the facade that he is a 'perfect Christian' that no doubt comes with the territory of being in the Christian limelight. So rarely are we given a glimpse into the real life of an artist we admire, only to find out that they, too, struggle with their faith.

If you've followed Joel Engle's career at all, you know his testimony and his story. Engle's father was never in the picture, and his mother died when he was young. He went to live with his grandparents, until his grandfather passed away, and then he went to a group home - from their God blessed him with an adoptive family as he entered his teen years. He shared this story numerous times over the years at different youth events (I saw him waaaaayyyy back when I was just reaching double digits when he sang at our little church of First Baptist Kenai Alaska for True Love Waits, and then again in my late teens at a Youth Conference in Anchorage, AK.) but that's as far as it went, he never really fleshed it out (other than the horror of finding his mother unconcious on the floor) before he went on to talk about the Grace and the Peace he'd found in God, in the Father he never knew he had.

The book is a fairly quick and easy read, but it holds a lot of power. The reader can definitely tell the writing was no easy task, but that it's also a watershed of emotion for Engle.The honesty within each page, and the pain, helps the reader not just get a better understanding of where Engle is coming from, but in a very real way brings about how Engle views his faith. The reader connects very quickly with Joel, even if their life was seemingly 'easy' with a two parent family and nothing 'horrible' has happened in their life because Joel is open with everything - especially his doubts and faults.

Engle never preaches at the reader, and he never talks down. It's like a long letter to a friend where he's just spilling his guts in a very real and personal way. It's his sharing of his faith, and even with everything that has seemingly gone wrong in his life - and much of it he still doesn't understand why it had to happen that way - you can see God moving in his life. Joel introduces you to a very real God who is more than just a spiritual being that is untouchable. God sustains us in our time of need, He is a very real comfort, and Joel uses his life as an example as to how. Yes, he had tragic moments in life and learned early on that life isn't fair - this is truth, we all have that same realization at some point in different ways. We live in a fallen world where evil does exist in all forms - not because God is not all powerful (He IS all powerful) but because He loves us enough to let us make decisions for ourselves (sometimes the wrong ones, but we typically need to learn the hard way).

This book is a must have, a must read. Share it with kids and adults alike that have had similar experiences with an absent father or even an absent mother. Someone who is struggling with their Faith, someone who needs Faith. Most of all, just let God touch you in some way with this book.

Book Review: Lynn Austin's Fire By Night

I just finished rereading the novel Fire By Night written by Lynn Austin (not to be confused with JANE Austin, whom my fingers keep typing). It's a story based on events during the Civil War (my favorite part of history for historical fiction novels) and focusses on the lives of two young women as they try to follow God's path for their lives even when society frowns upon it.

We first meet young Julia Hoffman, a lovely rich socialite who has her eyes on a young preacher. Her goal in life is, like most girls her age who have grown up in church, to become a wife and mother to a Godly man - even preferably a preacher - and she is content to do so - until she finds out that the man she's been trying to win over thinks not-so-highly of her or the other young ladies in her social class. His bluntness is not directed at her, but she overhears it none the less and is bound and determined to prove him wrong and then throw it in his face. She convinces her father to let her join the nurses in Washington, he believing she will tire of her dream in short order.

The second heroine in the tale is feisty, tom-boyish Phoebe Bigalow. She's a country girl who has every intention of joining up in the war. Left to tend a family's children while her three brothers go off to join the Union Army, it takes Phoebe all of one day to make up her mind to cut her hair, run away, and join the Yankees fight Johnny Reb. Phoebe's main reason? She's too tall and homely to ever be loved by a boy, so why not pretend to be one and at least have a purpose in life.

While their backgrounds are completely different, both women find themselves realizing and finding themselves once they are out of their element. Julia, who has had everything done for her, realizes she's far more capable than she knew. Phoebe, in turn, finds herself in a quandry when she finds herself falling in love with her best friend in the army. Both tell 'white lies' to get into the positions their in, and both are fearful of being found out.

The book takes a number of twists and turns not so much in the main characters, but certainly with those around them. The author is very good at keeping the reader within the mind of the two women and introducing the outside characters and their personalities in a similar way that the women might also have met and evaluated said characters. Julia Hoffman works with a cantakerous young doctor - James McGrath - whom is rumored to be a drunk and a murderer... the reader is fairly sure he isn't a murderer, but there is so little known for most of the story that you don't see the truth until the author reveals it in full.


I'm not a big fan of romance novels, Christian or otherwise, but I do find myself getting into this story for a number of reasons. This book centers around, as I said, one of my favorite parts of history. I'm totally into reading about the Civil War. Like all Historic Fiction novels, it does take a fair about of creative license, but overall the history is sound enough to keep it real. The second part is the selfish girl inside of me who understands the plight of both women. Phoebe for being a tom-boy and not fitting into that girlish mold that so many try to put her in, and Julia for being the good little Christian girl who's been told her whole life that her lot in life is to be the keeper of the home and a mother. While there is nothing wrong with that, it seems to demean the idea of all of what God had wanted.

Neither woman is against marriage, settling down, having a family and that being their primary goal. But, as Julia will come to realise - just because you're married you are not just another of your husband's apendages. You do not lose your identity. And there's a lot of God's work to be done by men AND women. Going against society's norms is sometimes needed if we are to do as God has called.

Over all it's a quick and enjoyable read. It's nothing steamy, it's sometimes cheesey, and yes it's one of those 'Christian Novels that try so very hard to not be the same as what the world would have in this same type of genre'. At least it's clean.

A is for Axel

I've been redoing my room tonight, and I ended up stopping and reading World Figure Skating Champion Kurt Browning's children's book A is for Axel: An Ice Skating Alphabet. I was fortunate enough to snag my copy at a book signing he did at the 2006 US Figure Skating National Championships. It was probably the greatest 'celebrity' experience of my life and sealed Kurt into the number one spot on my favorites list. I don't think there's a more genuine skater on the planet. The fact that he was able to boot Scott Hamilton out of that spot is probably the best indicator of how much I truly appreciate Browning as a skater and a person.

The book itself shows just another side of Kurt's talent, and brings a little light on his passion. As a father of two, it's obvious Kurt revels in his role as dad - his eldest is even featured in a couple of the book's illustrations. The simple poetry for each letter is sweet, and the tidbits on the history and technical side of figure skating - while simple in explanation - make the book good for kids just learning their letter to just starting to read real books... and is a great addition to any figure skating fan's collection.

Now, if we could just get Kurt to write a second autobiography that takes off where the one from 1992 left off, I'd be a happy fangirl.

Favorite Sled Dog Books

So I got an email from some random person asking if there were any good Iditarod books out there. The short answer is - yes there are - though most seem to be more sled dogs in general written by Iditarod super stars. However, reading a few is a fantastic way of getting into the spirit of the race.

Danger the Dog Yard Cat, written by 1985 Iditarod Champion Libby Riddles is a fun children's book about Riddles' cat. The story is a fictional look at Riddles' win on the Iditarod. Obviously the first woman to win the race did not have a tabby cat for a lead dog, but it's cute none the less. Growing up this was my favorite children's book (along with Thunderfeet, about Prehistoric Alaska), not only because of the storyline or the fact that my favorite musher of all time wrote it, but because it came with a wonderful audio cassette with a soundtrack written by Hobo Jim, the story - of course - was read by (who eles) "Danger" himself. It's a great first look into a musher's dog lot, and if you ever doubted that sled dogs were well loved by their caretakers, this book proves that wrong. Libby shows great love in her tribute to her four legged friends - feline and canine.

Author Gary Paulson might be most famous for his tween books like The Hatchet (still one of my favorite adventure novels for any age), but to Alaskans he's the Iditarod author. Winterdance is his semi autobiography and a humorous look at how Paulson trained for his first Iditarod. He gives an "outsiders" perspective on this very Alaskan race and does so with gusto. If you're looking for a clean, family friendly novel - this is not it. There is quite a bit of language - musher's rarely censor themselves - and he leaves no stone unturned. While most of the book is about the magic of the race, Paulson also delves into the brutality of it all from the dangers on the trail to the one unethical musher he comes across in the race. The book, like the race, is joyous and exhausting and not for the faint of heart. I read Winterdance at least once a year (always before the start of the race) to get into that Iditarod mood/mindset.

If novels aren't your thing, and picture books are more your speed then Dogs of the Iditarod will do it for you. The book is by the official Iditarod photographer, Jeff Schultz, and brings the faces of the real athletes of the Iditarod to light. Puppies and adult dogs are the stars of this book and the photos warm your heart (as well as captivate your imagination). Jeff Shultz is one of my favorite photojournalistic styled photographers and I envy him for his position with the Iditarod as the official photographer - that being said I don't think I could handle the extreme weather and temps he faces to get those amazing shots. He's one in a million, that guy, and the Iditarod (and fans) are lucky to have him following the race every step of the way.

Ever wonder what it is that makes a man (or woman for that matter) get the crazy notion that running dogs, and entering the Iditarod Sled Dog Race, is a good idea? Jeff King's Cool Hands Warm Hearts explains it all in the classic Jeff King style. It's humorous but full of heart - much in the same way as Winterdance is, but with one major difference: winterdance is written by an author first, musher second... Cool Hands is written by a champion musher. period. Jeff King is beloved by just about all in Alaska (except maybe fish and game, but that's another story for another day) and you'll know why as you read this book. It's a quick read that I am - so far - truly enjoying. I've not yet finished, but already it's among my favorite athlete autobiographies and definitely worth the add to any book collection.


On a side topic, working at the Iditarod Sales Table at the Millenium Hotel (Iditarod Headquarters this time of year) has brought to light that many don't know what Mitch Seavey's new book, Lead Follow or Get Out of the Way, is about. Many believed it would be an autobiography and have expressed disappointment that it was more technical than anything else - I blame the publisher for this as they don't really warn you with the description they provide on the jacket (or back of the book). This book is part of a series (hence the volume one portion of the title) that Mitch is working on to educate newer mushers as they begin their journey into sled dogs. I've not read the book yet (it's on my to get and to do lists) but knowing the bit I do about Mitch it's no surprising when people tell me that it's dry. Well, yeah, that's kinda who he is. He's not flashy like Lance Mackey, or overly charismatic like Jeff (or even Dallas Seavey), he's just a matter of fact kind of guy. Not that he's got no sense of humor, but with this book he's not about entertaining - but informing. Look for his autobiography towards the end of the book series. Now THAT's the one I'm waiting for.