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Squirrelland: Imagination and the Alaska Red Squirrel by Eric Wade
For over thirty years Eric and Doylanne Wade have traveled twice a year to their cabin on a river for an extended stay in the wilds of the Alaska boreal forest. There the adventure-loving couple has built a rewarding life among bear, moose, owls, grouse, and fish. Lately, their interest has been focused on squirrels, specifically the abundant and always amusing Alaska red squirrel. In Squirrelland, Eric writes about his varied experiences with squirrels, both wild and urban, but also layers in the observations of squirrel biologists and researchers as well as the musings of his grand imagination. Doylanne's many photographs make the story engaging and vibrant. Join the Wades on this visit to the Alaska wilderness and learn a few things about the antics of the common squirrel. NATURE / Animals / General ISBN: 978-1-962082-01-3 (print; softcover; perfect bound) Released September 26, 2023; Copyright 2023 88 pages; 44 full-color images |
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Author Biography Doylanne Wade has long told wilderness stories with her camera. Lady bugs, dragonflies, bumble bees, and ants; foxes, gray wolves, black bears, and lynx have all been captured with her camera in her more than forty years in Alaska. She has a special appreciation for the small creatures that mostly go unnoticed in a vast and majestic landscape. She now uses a DSLR camera with 150–600mm and 18–270 lenses. |
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“Squirrelland is an unexpected surprise. Full of poetic prose and depictions of the little moments and dramas of life in the deep woods, it’s also a close examination and study of one of Alaska’s primary but often overlooked residents: the red squirrel. Illustrated throughout with gorgeous photographs, the book is a tribute to the importance of the small, resilient creatures that populate, survive in, and enhance our wild places. If you’re familiar with Alaska woods life, the book will make you miss it; if not, it will provide a glimpse into the quiet magic of that world.” “Delightful, compelling, informative, entertaining, profound—it is difficult to find one word to best describe Squirrelland by Eric Wade. Choosing as his topic an animal small in stature, the ubiquitous red squirrel, Wade artfully guides the reader to an exploration of larger themes in nature. Wade employs scientific observation, but the key is that through careful observation of one small part of nature, a microcosm, we are led to better understand and appreciate the macrocosm of greater nature. Wade’s observations of this industrious and unique animal at times take on a kind of free associative style with thoughtful reflections, fascinating tangents, and engaging allusions to history, literature, and philosophy, all of it making for very satisfying reading. You may grow to admire, perhaps even like the red squirrel. In the background, providing context is the story of Wade and his wife, Doylanne, and their chosen life at their cabin in the wilds of Alaska. The references to the forest, the surrounding flora and fauna, the weather, the harsh and unpredictable conditions, and always the stirring beauty provide a dramatic backdrop for this story and lend it an almost symphonic complexity. The photographs spaced throughout the book, taken by Doylanne, of red squirrels in action along with stunning scenes from Alaska supplement and enhance the text and enriched any pictures I tried to form in my mind. If you love nature, if you like to consider and reflect on your place in nature, if you love a good read, and if you like beautiful photographs of nature, then Squirrelland is the book for you. “Prepare yourself for full immersion in the world of the red squirrel of interior Alaska. The subjects of Doylanne Wade’s exquisite photos range from the tiny to the immense—from the petite red squirrel to the massive bull moose. She zeroes in on rain-slicked lowbush cranberries and pans out for sweeping views of Denali and the river and sky around the homestead she shares with her husband, writer Eric Wade. Eric’s text likewise examines the red squirrel up close and in wider context. Inspired by a study of eastern gray squirrels in Massachusetts, he undertakes his own study to better understand the squirrels around the couple’s homestead. He weaves personal observations, scientific facts, and literary and historical references into a beautifully written account.” “In our super-sized culture, Eric Wade makes a case for attending to the small and (dare we say) common red squirrel. With a naturalist’s keen eye, he offers authentic perspectives on off-grid homesteading and our multi-faceted relationships with wildlife. A delightful foray into the Alaska wilderness with striking color photos by Wade’s wife, Doylanne.” |
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