When the Water Runs: Growing Up with Alaska

I sat down just to read the introduction and I never got out of my chair until I had read the whole book. The story of a family in frontier Alaska provides wonderful insight into the lives and character of native people of Alaska and the early pioneers who went their to seek their fortunes. Even if you are not interested in history or frontier Alaska, it a delightful story about real people with whom anyone can relate.

I had the privilege of teaching 30 years ago in the same Eskimo village that is central to this story, Selawik, AK. I found after returning to the "Lower 48" that I could not adequately describe what it was like there to anyone who had not spent time in the Arctic. Cheryl Schuermann has found a way, using the first person, to tell her Mother's story so well that I felt I was back there fishing with my friends on the banks of the Selawik River. I thank the author for so effectively preserving this story and the feelings it conveys. And I praise her Mother for having such a good memory for detail.

I loved reading this book about Audrey's adventures in Alaska! My grandmother and grandfather spent a few years in Alaska as a young couple with three boys and I was so excited to buy this book for her.

I was fascinated as I read Audrey's adventures growing up in the heartland of the Alaskan frontier! Written in first person, I felt I was there as each chapter shared incredible adventures, hardships, and celebrations of growing up in this pristine landscape. The author does a great job of including stories about native peoples and, through a child's eyes, explored building relationships with children and families very different from their own. This would be a great piece of literature for teachers to include when teaching about this region.

This is a fascinating read that immediately transported me to another time and place. This engrossing book captured my attention right from the beginning. Through actual letters and a captivating narrative the author tells a story that honors women, pioneers and the beauty and traditions of the Alaskan frontier.