October 26, 2020
Wilderness guide Dihle creates a wide-ranging portrait of brown bears in this adventurous collection of essays. The book, Dihle writes, is “about our relationship with brown bears,” though it’s also an ode to Alaskan wilderness as his home state becomes “more encroached upon.” His experiences run between panic and reverence in the face of the “incredibly muscled and poised” animal, and interspersed with his encounters are profiles of past adventurers and their relationships with bears. Among them are John “Grizzly” Adams (it’s “unlikely that anyone has been mauled by bears more” than him, Dihle notes); Theodore Roosevelt (who “famously refused to kill a bear”); and hunting guide Ralph Young (who said he loved his wife but “loved the bears more”). In one touching moment, Dihle reveals that he named his son after the Shiras grizzlies from southeast Alaska: “When he is older, I will tell him the story of his name. How the government and corporations wanted to clear-cut and build roads across Admiralty.” He creates memorable portraits of fellow explorers, but where Dihle’s writing shines is in his unwavering appreciation of and commitment to preserving bears’ wild habitat: “Once it’s gone, it’s gone forever.” With its vivid prose, this moving homage to Alaska and those who live there really hits home.
December 1, 2020
Dihle, contributing editor for Alaska Magazine and Hunt Alaska Magazine, has penned a homage to the brown, or grizzly, bear. In this personal account that also offers plenty of scientific detail, he shares how the bear reached the North American continent and documents contacts with explorers, settlers, and mountain men throughout the years. Described encounters with the bears engendered respect, and often didn't end well for either the men or the bears. The author explains how the bears were all but wiped out in the lower 48 states by bounty hunters to protect loggers and ranchers and their flocks, but conservationists and hunters later worked to protect them. Woven throughout the book are enthralling poetic memories centered on exploring the Alaskan wilderness, observing grizzlies and other wildlife. VERDICT A lyrically written tribute to the grizzly that will appeal to readers who enjoy books about the history of exploration, grizzly bears, and wilderness areas as well as those whose hobbies include hiking, hunting, or learning more about the natural world. Suggest to those who enjoyed Down from the Mountain by Bryce Andrews.--Sue O'Brien, Downers Grove, IL
Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.