North of Hope: A Daughter's Arctic Journey in Ask Shannon Huffman Polson

Aug 04, 2013 Anne rated it it was amazing

This is a beautifully written memoir, candid about the grief of losing one's parents, especially in such an unexpected and horrifying way, and candid about the family relationships that are exposed and experienced as a result of such an event.
There are a few things that stand out for me about this book. among them: 1) a malleability of time is conveyed, that poignantly suggests the immediacy and also the span of a lifetime that are both experienced when a family member dies. there is a plastici ...more

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Apr 15, 2013 Jaime Boler rated it really liked it

Shannon Huffman Polson’s sobering yet sentimental memoir North of Hope is an extraordinary voyage of self-discovery for the author. On June 25, 2005, the writer’s father and stepmother were declared dead after a bear attacked them in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. A wave of grief and anger enveloped Polson.

Each day, she “came home from work and stretched out on the couch, flattened like roadkill.” Polson eloquently illustrates the deep sorrow she felt; her misery is palpable.

The me
Shannon Huffman Polson’s sobering yet sentimental memoir North of Hope is an extraordinary voyage of self-discovery for the author. On June 25, 2005, the writer’s father and stepmother were declared dead after a bear attacked them in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. A wave of grief and anger enveloped Polson.

Each day, she “came home from work and stretched out on the couch, flattened like roadkill.” Polson eloquently illustrates the deep sorrow she felt; her misery is palpable.

The memoirist envied “cultures that have mourning traditions,” those who wear black or who tear their clothing. “Why had our culture done away with all that?” she asked. “To spare the majority the discomfort that each of us must one day face? And by doing so robbing every one of us of the space to grieve and neutering society’s ability to mourn with the bereaved, our chance to appreciate life more for knowing death?” Polson felt cheated. It occurred to her “that grief is something imposed, but that grieving is something that must be learned and, like anything of consequence, would reveal its realities slowly, over a lifetime.”

But Polson does not have a lifetime; she must grapple with her anguish somehow so she can “make it through the shadowed valley and someday come out the other side.”

One year after the horrible tragedy, Polson and two companions, one of whom is her adopted brother, set off on a daring expedition to trace their father and stepmother’s route. The Arctic was a place her dad loved, a magical place that “worked its way under his skin” and “became a part of him.” Polson embarked on the expedition to “find” her father, “to know him,” and to “glimpse some of the magic” he and his wife had experienced on their trip.

Polson writes, “Throughout humankind’s long history, the idea of journey has carried with it expectations of adventure, of wildlife, of challenge, of conquest.” As the writer and those who accompany her undertake this arduous and dangerous Arctic journey, we go along with them. Polson ably navigates her narrative with flashbacks and incredible descriptions of Alaska’s wildlife. Their adventure is both beautiful and perilous, especially when the group spots a pair of grizzlies. The bears fill Polson with wonder, but they also repulse her as she thinks what one did to her family.

By turns sobering and inspirational, North of Hope is a meditation on grief and family and a daughter’s love letter to her deceased father. Polson’s memoir is also a quiet yet powerful treatise on environmental changes and the effects of global warming and development in the Arctic. If you enjoyed Cheryl Strayed’s Wild, then you will love North of Hope. Polson does for Alaska’s Arctic what Strayed did for the Pacific Crest Trail. Although Polson structures her account around the Requiem Mass, North of Hope is rousing, as these funeral hymns lead her to a river and help her find her way forward.
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Apr 10, 2013 Create With Joy rated it really liked it

Shelves: book-reviews, 2013-reviews

Some people experience sorrow beyond anything most of us can even begin to imagine.

On the Sunday after a painful break-up, while her heart was still raw, 33-year old Shannon Huffman of Seattle received a message that would forever change her life.

The message came from a stranger - Officer Holschen of Kakctovik, Alaska.

"Are you related to Richard and Katherine Huffman?" the voice asked.

"I'm Rich's daughter."

"I'm sorry to tell you this," said the voice, "but a bear came into their campsite last ni ...more

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Sep 21, 2013 Paul rated it it was amazing

Shelves: religion-spirituality, biography-memoirs, nonfiction

Shannon Huffman Polson's North of Hope: A Daughter's Arctic Journey is a meditative memoir about beauty and bravery in the midst of brokenness, light and love in the midst of loss, mortality and music in the midst of mystery, and, penultimately, poetry and prayer in the midst of pain and pleasure. That is, meaning and significance in the midst of suffering and tragedy. It is about the calling for communion, courage, and creativity in the real presence and mystery of the Creator and creation. I h ...more

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Apr 10, 2013 Star rated it it was amazing

First day of a writing class - we go round and say a bit about what we are working on, Shannon mentions she's working on a book length project about her father and stepmother being eaten by a grizzly in Alaska... Holy Sh*t! I think, followed by thank God I'm not her, followed by how is she going to pull this off without being all sappy and throwing a pity party for herself? Well,she does. I feel honored to have been a witness to her process and to know this kick ass woman (though she wouldn't sw ...more

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Oct 08, 2012 Tara Conklin rated it it was amazing

Admission #1: I am generally not a fan of memoir. Admission #2: the author is a friend. Regardless - I loved this book. Shannon is a beautiful writer and she explores her grief, her love of nature and music, and her faith in beautiful prose and with startling honestly. Highly recommended.

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