Apropos of nothing: "Civilization is cutting your sandwich on the bias."

Current reading (no spoilers):

I am on an Iditarod kick, which is pretty timely, since it is run in March.

I usually read one book at a time, and nearly always perservere to the end. But I had three or four books started and stacked open, (including Never Let Me Go, by Kasuo Ishisguru--I might have something to say about that one later--if I finish it), one on top of the other, when some holds by Gary Paulsen came in: Dogsong, Woodsong, and Puppies, Dogs and Blue Northers. I happened on those while searching the catalog for My Life of Adventure, by Norman D. Vaughan. (I have yet to move on to that, my 'real' goal, right?)

I dipped into Dogsong, which is a fictional account of a young Eskimo, Russell, who seeks to return to the ways of his ancestors. It is written like a hymn to the old ways, but pursuit of the pure, clean way of living, such as they knew, extracts a heavy price from Russel. I dipped in and then settled down to read it, almost clandestinely. There were all those other, substantial books waiting, after all, and this was catalogued as a juvey.

I read that in one sitting (well, it IS short) and then, hooked on Paulsen's view of life in the cold NW, I moved on to Woodsong. I read that one even more quickly. But I wasn't just rushing through--I was rapt, reading about Paulsen's relationship with his sled dogs, and what they taught him. Besides the dogs, which fill his mind and heart, there are uncommon experiences with other creatures, like a common squirrel. His descriptions of such scenes have made me look at those creatures with a new eye. What do I really know about those wild animals that skitter through my yard?

Not having gotten my fill, I picked up Puppies, Dogs and Blue Northers just as I put down Woodsong. Yeah, I must admit that I am a sucker for any book that has an animal in it--I zero right in on that animal, even if it is just a kitty owned by the detective, passing through or being fed. But, Paulsen's stories about his puppies and sled dogs made me laugh and made me cry--and shocked me and grossed me out--and kept me reading till the book was finished, long after I should have set it aside and turned out the light.

I've checked the Powell's website and there are many Paulsen books listed there that I have yet to read--Hurrah!