Flight of the Goose

by Lesley Thomas

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1971, the Alaskan Arctic. "It was a time when much was hidden, before outsiders came on bended knee to learn from the elders. Outsiders came, but it was not to learn from us; it was to change us. There was a war and a university, an oil company and a small village, all run by men. There was a young man who hunted geese to feed his family and another who studied geese to save them. And there was a young woman who flew into the world of spirits to save herself..." So relates Kayuqtuq show more Ugungoraseok, "the red fox". An orphan traumatized by her past, she seeks respect in her traditional Inupiat village through the outlawed path of shamanism. Her plan leads to tragedy when she interferes with scientist Leif Trygvesen, who has come to research the effects of oil spills on salt marshes - and evade the draft. Told from both Kayuqtuq's and Leif's perspectives, Flight of the Goose is a tale of cultural conflict, spiritual awakening, redemption and love in a time when things were, to use the phrase of an old arctic shaman, "no longer familiar." show less

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Member Reviews

3 reviews
I found this story interesting and enjoyable — interesting in the contrasting of cultures and settings, and shared human proclivities, good and bad; and enjoyable in the accomplished writing, good character studies, and creative down-to-earth plot. I especially liked many of the sprinkled insights, and ecological aspect. There is a good bit in this story, camouflaged in the plot interactions and flights of fancy, that should resonate with readers.

That, though I tended to nod off during some of the ups and downs of romance passages, I did chuckle at an innovative, shamanistic inclusion of a bear spirit in one such scene. Also, at times the story seemed a bit drawn out, but not so much that I skimmed over portions.
Loved this book! It is an excellent read for anyone who is interested in Alaska. Since I come from a Native American background, I enjoyed this novel very much. Highly recommended to all.
This award-winning literary novel has timely themes of climate change, Big Oil, indigenous spirituality, war, cultural and environmental loss and healing.
It is studied at Boston University (theology department), University of Alaska (English department -world literature) and The International School of Shamanism in Atlanta. It has been chosen by book clubs across the world, from Quebec to Ireland to Australia.

For rave reviews by Native Alaskans, top anthropologists, theologians, shamans, birders, peace activists, scientists, environmentalists, feminists, English professors, professional book critics and general readers, see our author website http://www.lesleythomas.alaskawriters.com

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Books about/set in Alaska
50 works; 12 members

Author Information

Picture of author.
1+ Work 49 Members

Lesley Thomas is a LibraryThing Author, an author who lists their personal library on LibraryThing.

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Common Knowledge

Canonical title
Flight of the Goose
Original publication date
2005
Epigraph
When all is well, Sila sends no message to humankind...as long as we do not abuse life but act with reverence toward our daily foot--Najagneq (Inupiaq shaman)
Dedication
In memory of Andrea
First words
Chapter 1 (p. 13): Who am I to tell a story? My hair is getting white and I have reached the age when men all across the North once respected and feared a woman, if they had not before.
Blurbers
Bigjim, Fred; Jans, Nick; Lende, Heather; Ray, Dorothy Jean; Briggs, Jean L.

Classifications

Genres
General Fiction, Fiction and Literature
LCC
PS3620 .H632 .F55Language and LiteratureAmerican literature
BISAC

Statistics

Members
49
Popularity
611,843
Reviews
3
Rating
½ (3.36)
Languages
English
Media
Paper, Ebook
ISBNs
2
ASINs
1