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Kerri Anne's Reviews > The Cruelest Miles: The Heroic Story of Dogs and Men in a Race Against an Epidemic
The Cruelest Miles: The Heroic Story of Dogs and Men in a Race Against an Epidemic
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Note to self: Don't read a book about a deadly and formidable epidemic during a pandemic.*
I would, however, definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in Alaskan history, including but not limited to the true story behind some of the most heroic sled-dogs in history and one of the best animated movies of all-time (Balto! The original, 1995 version). This story also includes heaps of interesting and essential Indigenous history (as any story about the history of Alaska should), and it handles that history with respect and reverence.
Well-written and well-researched, with a handful of sections that read a bit slower and felt a bit more difficult to navigate, overall this book is an engaging and highly informative read. It's also peppered with the sort of hope, iron will, and sheer insanity only the direst of circumstances unearth—like stalwart mushers and their unendingly amazing dogs who painstakingly manage to carry diphtheria serum along the treacherous route to Nome while battling blizzards, white-out conditions, shifting sea ice, and temperatures down to -70 degrees. NEGATIVE SEVENTY DEGREES. I have no real barometer for that sort of cold, and I'm grateful I don't.
Once again and forever: Dogs are amazing, and we don't deserve them.
*In my defense I checked this book out from the library well before the word "pandemic" was uttered, but still: yikes.
[Three-point-five stars for a story I knew in pieces, and so many more pieces I didn't know.]
I would, however, definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in Alaskan history, including but not limited to the true story behind some of the most heroic sled-dogs in history and one of the best animated movies of all-time (Balto! The original, 1995 version). This story also includes heaps of interesting and essential Indigenous history (as any story about the history of Alaska should), and it handles that history with respect and reverence.
Well-written and well-researched, with a handful of sections that read a bit slower and felt a bit more difficult to navigate, overall this book is an engaging and highly informative read. It's also peppered with the sort of hope, iron will, and sheer insanity only the direst of circumstances unearth—like stalwart mushers and their unendingly amazing dogs who painstakingly manage to carry diphtheria serum along the treacherous route to Nome while battling blizzards, white-out conditions, shifting sea ice, and temperatures down to -70 degrees. NEGATIVE SEVENTY DEGREES. I have no real barometer for that sort of cold, and I'm grateful I don't.
Once again and forever: Dogs are amazing, and we don't deserve them.
*In my defense I checked this book out from the library well before the word "pandemic" was uttered, but still: yikes.
[Three-point-five stars for a story I knew in pieces, and so many more pieces I didn't know.]
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Reading Progress
Started Reading
April 30, 2020
– Shelved
April 30, 2020
– Shelved as:
2020
April 30, 2020
– Shelved as:
running-with-the-wolves
April 30, 2020
– Shelved as:
true-stories
April 30, 2020
–
Finished Reading
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Jessica
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May 02, 2020 07:12AM
Have you seen the movie Togo? It's EXCELLENT and sounds like it might be a good companion to this book. (Is the dog Togo mentioned in the book?)
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Oooh, I haven't seen that movie, but I'll definitely check it out! And: For sure. This book is much more about Togo (and all the dogs that delivered serum; there were a ton of dogs involved!) vs. just Balto. I'm a sucker for the animated movie for nostalgic reasons more than anything; it's certainly not historically accurate, but I can't help but love it.
