WHISPERING ALASKA

Can a family torn apart after losing their mother to Covid-19 find a new life on a tiny Alaskan island?

When Nicky Hall arrives on the island of Shee with her father and twin sister, Josie, the pandemic is still raging. Outspoken Josie has recently become an environmental activist and is ready to fight an upcoming vote to clear-cut a major section of the island’s ancient forest. The girls’ Uncle Cliff, who is married to their father’s sister, runs the logging mill crew. He’s sure that without the local lumber mill, many islanders will lose their jobs and have to leave. Introverted Nicky would rather stay out of the debate, but her cousin Clete tells her that he can hear the trees talking, and they’re saying that she will save them. There’s a dash of fabulism added to the science of this environmentally driven story that covers mycorrhizal networks and the life cycle of salmon, among other subjects. Unfortunately, some plot points and elements of emotional character development are handled repetitively, and transitions within scenes can be choppy. The Hall family is White; Uncle Cliff is Tlingit and also speaks the language. Although the intention to include Indigenous perspectives throughout is clear, the novel unfortunately centers a chosen one/White savior figure who is aided by an Indigenous secondary character who shares wisdom but seems only to exist to support her.

Slow pacing drags down this tale of grief and environmental conservation.