Alaska A to Z

What's the state gem of Alaska? What movies have been filmed there? How many species of whale are found in the state's waters? How did the town of Chicken get its name? What is a "bidarka" or an "oogruk" or a "pingo"? Who was Russian John Zarnowsky? If you're from "Outside," perhaps you've never heard of "breakup" or "termination dust." Whether you're an Alaska resident, a first-time or returning visitor, or simply someone who dreams of visiting the Last Frontier someday, this great book from the editors of the MILEPOST is choc full of great information.The book is formatted somewhat like a light encyclopedia, with topics in alphabetical order. Most of the entries are short and to-the-point; the longest are only slightly over one page. It's interesting to read cover-to-cover, or you can just look things up as you need to. Residents of the state will already know some of the material, but there are also plenty of lesser-known facts included. I lived in Alaska for thirteen years and still learned several new things. My only criticism is that I wish they'd included a few more topics. For instance, there is no information on the Alaska Zoo, the Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog Race, or Joe Redington, Sr., to name a few.For the information "Alaska A to Z" does contain, however, I still highly recommend it. Published in 1997, it's a little bit old, so things like population figures are not quite current, but most of the entries are still applicable. The text is also interespersed with a selection of black-and-white photographs from the MILEPOST archives and quotes about Alaska from the famous and the not-so-famous. At the back of the book are two pages of contact information for various resources you might want to turn to for additional information. This is an excellent little reference for anyone with an interest in Alaska, resident or not.