BEYOND THE TREES :: Adam Shoalts

A version of this review previously appeared in Shelf Awareness and is republished here with permission.

"Are you insane?" he was asked. Professional adventurer Adam Shoalts wanted to do something "that hadn't already been done" in celebration of Canada's sesquicentennial. What he came up with combined his passion for paddling wild lakes and rivers with his desire for a challenge that would raise awareness about our vanishing wild places. His plan was "unlikely to succeed" and questions regarding his sanity were many, even with respect to the "easy" parts.

Beyond the Trees is the result of Shoalts surviving a months-long, 2,500-mile trek across the Canadian Arctic with nothing but his canoe, a backpack and two barrels crammed with rations (more than 170 pounds of dead weight). He faced down grizzly bears and muskox (sometimes right at his tent opening) and battled severe winds, chunks of ice drifting like jigsaw-puzzle pieces and hordes of blood-sucking insects. Most remarkable (and perilous) was that to chase the ice melt, Shoalts's route required he travel upstream, against the flow of rapids that generally called for parties of six to 12 to travel down safely.

Shoalts approaches the many dangers with smarts and aplomb, while also transmitting the tension in his recounting. Despite the risks Shoalts conveys, Beyond the Trees is an earnest love story to one of the last portions of the Earth that remains undeveloped and where large animals still roam free. Peppered with Shoalts's corny humor and legends of lone trappers' unspeakable deeds, this white-knuckle affair is a travelogue, adventure story and horror-movie-in-waiting that sparks an urge to get out and go.

STREET SENSE: An intrepid explorer paddles and portages the vast and treacherous Canadian Arctic, sharing its unparalleled beauty and crucial need for its preservation. Nature lovers, risk-takers, travel nerds alike will dig this one.

COVER NERD SAYS:  Pretty picture, passable fonts with good balance. Subtitle here passes muster, as the title needs a little more explanation. I will say this photo makes the trip look much more peaceful than it was. A little more urgency or danger might have added to it, but overall a great looking cover.

THE RIVER :: Peter Heller

A version of this review previously appeared in Shelf Awareness and is republished here with permission.

Peter Heller's experience as an outdoorsman and adventure journalist is on stunning display in The River, a sure-handed combination of brutal wilderness writing and the masterful character insight he demonstrated in 2017's Celine. Jack and Wynn are like brothers, bonded over their love of mountains and books. On break from Dartmouth, they decide to paddle and portage a string of lakes in Manitoba, Canada. The serenity of canoeing, fishing and paperbacks over a campfire transforms into urgency when they spot a raging wildfire headed their way.

Safety is an increased-paddling-pace away--until a man they'd previously heard arguing with a woman shows up at their camp. Bloodied, rattled and armed, he claims his wife is missing. Jack and Wynn make a time-eating trip upstream to look for her and end up doubting the man's story and fearing further for their well-being. On the run from a killer fire, inclement weather, waning provisions and a man whose motives they mistrust, Jack and Wynn will need every iota of their wilderness savvy to survive.

Heller's writing is as appealing as ever. His knowledge of nature and the elements takes a leading role that is technical but not overwhelming. Despite the stirring turn from sheer joy to menace, particularly through the looming fire's impact on flora and fauna, the prose is never rushed or frantic. Character is still the heart of The River, as core differences in the men's responses to the dangers and ideas about how to proceed amplify the tension and tragedy.


STREET SENSE: Peter Heller's work is ever-changing, yet character is always at the heart of it. The River should have high appeal to the outdoor crowd with the details on paddling and the like, but it remains an adventure story, a mystery and a piece on how characters respond to the pressures of the elements, both natural and created by man. If you're a fan, you'll be a fan. If you've not read Peter's work before, this is a great place to start if you have a leaning towards outdoor adventure.

A FAVORITE PASSAGE: Fire is a large part of this story and Heller's writing about the wildfire is haunting. He's superb at dropping in descriptions that are apt and beautiful but not momentum-breakers. There are parts of this passage that I don't want to disclose, so it's going to be a partial, but I loved this description of a fire that is so much more than a fire: "On this side were only low hisses, a ticking and chirping, a simmering crackle like a million crickets, hellfire crickets, singing of apocalypse and char."

COVER NERD SAYS:  It's sometimes hard to judge a cover when you know the book exists, but I believe I can somewhat objectively say I really dig this one with or without the name Peter Heller on the front. I was drawn in by the canoe, paddles and color palette, but the kickers are the turmoil previewed by the water motion and oar placement. Until just now I didn't even really think about the fact that the water is red, but wowza. Great work. 

ON THE JAVA RIDGE :: Jock Serong

A version of this review originally appeared in Shelf Awareness and is reprinted here with permission.

Devastatingly brilliant, Jock Serong's On the Java Ridge is an emotionally grueling mix of high-octane action, life-and-death political maneuvering and, at its heart, an anguishing portrayal of worldwide refugee crises. On the eve of federal elections, Minister for Border Integrity Cassius Calvert discloses a new policy regarding unannounced boats in Australian waters--no unidentified vessels will be offered maritime assistance.

 

Meanwhile, two phinisi (Indonesian-built sailboats) head toward Australia. The Takalar is packed with asylum seekers--men, women and children of varied ethnic backgrounds trying to escape the terror of their homelands. The Java Ridge, owned by a charter surfing company, is full of white Australians headed for legendary remote island waves.

 

The boats' trajectories result in an ill-fated meeting, and the Australian government becomes aware of a phinisi in potentially dire straits. Willing to sacrifice foreign lives to keep the favor of the electorate, officials stand behind the new policy. Even when Calvert suspects Australian lives may be at stake, he's ordered to stand down and maintain plausible deniability.

 

Serong (author of The Rules of Backyard Cricket and 2015 Ned Kelly Award-winning Quota) writes masterfully from varied perspectives, crafting haunting characters struggling to survive in a raging sea of human horror and callous partisanship. Life aboard each boat is depicted in detail that highlights the dichotomy like a red-hot poker to the gut--cavalier tourists relieve themselves over deck rails as refugees struggle to maintain their dignity while living in their own waste. Beautiful, mournful, infuriating and brimming with tension, On the Java Ridge is utterly incomparable. 

STREET SENSE: This book. Man, oh man. My favorite read of the year thus far, hands down. I was moved to tears multiple times, and while this erstwhile curmudgeon admits to something of a soft spot deep down, that is a rare reading occurrence for me (something I probably chalk up to my own lack of imagination). But this. Damn. As a half-Aussie, I try to read Australian authors on a regular basis Serong jumped to the top of my list when I picked up The Rules of Backyard Cricket, which I loved. Java Ridge tops that great work and leaves me all the more anxious for Preservation  (publishing in October of this year in Australia). Just go take a gander at this one and make an old crank happy.ADDED BONUS: Pet chicken. Seriously, how can you resist?

A FAVORITE PASSAGE:  She thought about this as they'd traveled. So many people out there, out the windows of buses and on the streets. So many different people, fighting with each other over the complex disagreements they had. Maybe the only way it could all be sorted out was by the rise and fall of terrible things. The war was a terrible thing, so probably there were other terrible things, like maybe a great upwelling of the ocean that smothered a whole country. It would be sad for the children, because they weren't involved in the war. And it would be sad for their parents, because they would miss their children. It made her feel confused, paralyzed, to think of all this: such thinking surely wasn't the way of the Prophet.

COVER NERD SAYS: This cover is both right smack in my wheelhouse and perfect for the book--moody, beautiful and powerful. As soon as I saw the image I wanted to know what was going on inside. Perfection.