Outsider: An Old Man, a Mountain and the Search for a Hidden Past

by Brett Popplewell

Description

Into the Wild meets Born to Run meets The Stranger in the Woods in a fascinating true story of a marathon-running hermit and a journalist's quest to solve the mystery at the core of the enigmatic man's existence When journalist Brett Popplewell first heard about Dag Aabye, an aging former stuntman who lived alone inside a school bus on a mountain, running day and night through blizzards and heat waves, he was intrigued and bewildered. Captivated by the seemingly implausible tale of a wild show more super-athlete aging more slowly than the rest of us, he was determined to meet the apocryphal white-haired man who was pushing the boundaries of the human mind and body beyond what anyone could dream was possible. What Popplewell witnessed on a secluded mountain perch led him on a six-year odyssey to uncover the true story of the 81-year-old man. Outsider takes readers on a remarkable journey from Nazi-occupied Norway to Argentina and British Columbia. The book chronicles how a child born under mysterious circumstances during World War II finds his way onto the big screen in Goldfinger, is heralded as the world's first extreme skier, and is later driven into the wilderness. Both joyful and tragic, Outsider presents a bold challenge to our notions of aging, belonging and human accomplishment. show less

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lamour 1,391 reviews

Popplewell is a journalist professor at Carleton University in Ottawa who sought out Dag Aabye who he had heard was running extreme trail runs in the Rocky Mountains which involved training his body to run 24 hours straight. This led to Popplewell helping Dag find out who he was which led to Norway during the Nazi occupation to trace mystery parents in a savage time.

Dag is a fascinating individual who proclaims a positive view of life no matter what difficulty faces him. Recommended.

Jun 21, 2023