Editorial Content for Marooned in the Arctic: The True Story of Ada Blackjack, the "Female Robinson Crusoe" (Women of Action)
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Beyond MAROONED IN THE ARCTIC's pedestrian opening sentence ("Ada Delutuk was born on May 10, 1898, in the remote settlement of Spruce Creek, eight miles from the small village of Solomon, Alaska") awaits all the bravery, bravado, and tragedy of arctic exploration's Heroic Age. By the second page, Ada has already led her tubercular son, Bennett, on a 40-mile trek across Alaska's backcountry; by MAROONED's second chapter, Ada has embarked for the Subarctic, braving the great unknown --- and her paralyzing fear of polar bears --- to pay for Bennett's treatment. Entrusting her life to four strangers and a rocky outcropping in the Arctic Sea, Ada endures an early bout of arctic hysteria (she flees the tent, poisons herself and rambles across the desolate island alone) and struggles with an ever-expanding job description. She may have journeyed to Wrangel as a seamstress, but Ada returns as a cook, boat-maker, seal- and duck-hunter, nurse to her dying companion and --- at last --- lone survivor.
"MAROONED's claims of pulse-pounding, knuckle-clenching adventure and a "female Robinson Crusoe" might hook your interest, but this bio's abundance of salvaged photographs and first-person accounts earns your respect."
Let's get one thing straight: MAROONED's claims of pulse-pounding, knuckle-clenching adventure and a "female Robinson Crusoe" might hook your interest, but this bio's abundance of salvaged photographs and first-person accounts earns your respect. MAROONED grounds the razzle-dazzle of arctic conquest in scrupulous fact-checking, and Caravantes somehow forges diaries, scraps of letters, rumors, cover storie, and false accusations into a coherent narrative. Granted, MAROONED's story arc does emerge a tad lopsided; the suspense crescendos during Ada's lone battle for survival, yet the book crams the two months following her teammate's death into a meager dozen pages.
Unfortunately, MAROONED's reliance on facts stunts its character development. Although Ada's love for her son fuels her fight for survival (both on Wrangel and off), the sheer lack of records clouds readers' perceptions of Bennett Blackjack. Beyond his diagnosis and love of canine movie star Strongheart, Ada's ill son --- the reason for her ordeal on Wrangel and, consequently, this biography --- remains a mystery. Don't get me wrong, I more than understood Ada's affection for Benett, I just didn't share it.
While the book's brisk prose leaves little room for character development or lush imagery, the bio's crisp tone also accelerates the pacing. MAROONED condenses a slurry of pomp, disillusionment, grit and survival into a compact 208 pages --- unsurprisingly, Ada's ordeal speeds by at a pace belying our heroine's endurance. Craving a taut mashup of arctic exploration's Heroic Age and twenty-first century feminism? Peggy Caravantes' MAROONED IN THE ARCTIC has you covered.
Teaser
In 1921, four men ventured into the Arctic for a top-secret expedition: an attempt to claim uninhabited Wrangel Island in northern Siberia for Great Britain. With the men was a young Inuit woman named Ada Blackjack, a cook and seamstress, trying to earn money to care for her sick son. Conditions soon turned dire for the team when they were unable to kill enough game to survive. Three of the men tried to cross the frozen Chukchi Sea for help but were never seen again, leaving Ada with one remaining team member who soon died. Determined to be reunited with her son, Ada learned to survive alone in the icy world by trapping foxes, catching seals, and avoiding polar bears.
Promo
In 1921, four men ventured into the Arctic for a top-secret expedition: an attempt to claim uninhabited Wrangel Island in northern Siberia for Great Britain. With the men was a young Inuit woman named Ada Blackjack, a cook and seamstress, trying to earn money to care for her sick son. Conditions soon turned dire for the team when they were unable to kill enough game to survive. Three of the men tried to cross the frozen Chukchi Sea for help but were never seen again, leaving Ada with one remaining team member who soon died. Determined to be reunited with her son, Ada learned to survive alone in the icy world by trapping foxes, catching seals, and avoiding polar bears.
About the Book
In 1921, four men ventured into the Arctic for a top-secret expedition: an attempt to claim uninhabited Wrangel Island in northern Siberia for Great Britain. With the men was a young Inuit woman named Ada Blackjack, who had signed on as cook and seamstress to earn money to care for her sick son. Conditions soon turned dire for the team when they were unable to kill enough game to survive. Three of the men tried to cross the frozen Chukchi Sea for help but were never seen again, leaving Ada with one remaining team member who soon died of scurvy. Determined to be reunited with her son, Ada learned to survive alone in the icy world by trapping foxes, catching seals, and avoiding polar bears. After she was finally rescued in August 1923, after two years total on the island, Ada became a celebrity, with newspapers calling her a real “female Robinson Crusoe.” The first young adult book about Blackjack’s remarkable story, MAROONED IN THE ARTIC includes sidebars on relevant topics of interest to teens, including the use cats on ships, the phenomenon known as Arctic hysteria, and aspects of Inuit culture and beliefs. With excerpts from diaries, letters,and telegrams; historic photos; a map; source notes; and a bibliography, this is an indispensible resource for any young adventure lover, classroom, or library.
