SUSAN BUTCHER AND THE IDITAROD TRAIL

An overview of Butcher's 1982 second-place win prefaces the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race's background: an exciting account of the historic 1925 race against death, when diphtheria serum was relayed over 1000 miles, from Anchorage to Nome, in five days. Explaining how the Iditarod was organized in tribute to that life-saving run, Dolan follows Butcher from her New England childhood through participation in 15 Iditarods, four of which she won—an inspiring portrait of a superb athlete and dog trainer, a woman of great determination and courage who set a goal and worked until she achieved it. Meanwhile, Butcher has earned the friendship and admiration of colleagues in a tough, male-dominated sport where the lines between life and death are often thin. All in all, an exhilarating account, though without the immediacy and poetic vision of Paulsen's Woodsong (1990); older readers will also enjoy Race Across Alaska (1988) by Libby Riddles, the first woman to win the Iditarod. B&w photos; appendices (lists of checkpoints, winners, Butcher's standings and awards). A map would have been welcome; index not seen. (Biography. 10+)