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Original Title:	Coming into the Country
ISBN:	0374522871 (ISBN13: 9780374522872)
Edition Language:	English
Setting:	Alaska(United States)
Literary Awards:	National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for General Nonfiction (1977)

Coming Into the Country Paperback | Pages: 448 pages

Point Regarding Books Coming Into the Country

Title	:	Coming Into the Country
Author	:	John McPhee
Book Format	:	Paperback
Book Edition	:	First Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 448 pages
Published	:	April 1st 1991 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (first published 1977)
Categories	:	Nonfiction. Travel. Environment. Nature. History. Science

Narration Supposing Books Coming Into the Country

Alaska, the early 1960s. Darkness covered the land. The latest winter storm, which by then had already lasted half a century, still showed no sign of ending. The cold and the snow were beginning to wear the proud Alaskans down. Then Russia invaded. Again. The fledgling state was unprepared for war, and so the Alaskan Militia fell back before the forces of the Dark Lord Stalin, and the Red Army of Moscow reached the walls of Juneau. For two days and nights the city was bombarded by communist orcs. On February 11, 1964, the third day of the seige, a light appeared on the horizon. It was the sun! After fifty years of endless night, dawn finally broke over Alaska! Rousing the defenders, the mighty wizard Ted Stevens the White led the final charge and drove the Red Army into the sea. Alaska won the day.

Ten years passed.

In the early 70s, the Prophet McPhee came to Alaska. He had had visions since the Great Dawn, terrible, awe-inspiring visions of a woman in red riding a war-grizzly. The priests he spoke to all agreed: it was the Mother of Grizzlies, Daughter of Alaska, the great Messiah-Queen of the prophecies who would restore the mighty Alaskan Empire to glory and lead Her armies out of the North to conquer the Lower 48. The Return of the Sun had marked the hour of Her birth, but none had seen sign of Her since. And so the Prophet McPhee vowed to find Her. Assembling a party of shamen, slaves (bearing gifts of gold, jewels, and newspapers), and mages from the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, the Department of Fish and Game, and other government agencies, McPhee set out into the widerness. Questions arose: was the Mother of Grizzlies also Daughter of Grizzlies, or was She merely a feral child, raised and educated in the ways of the bear? Would they find Her feasting on fish and berries, or did She hibernate in the caves of bears, sleeping until Alaska needed a savior? Russia had been silent for many years, but would surely invade again.

The expedition failed; most of the party was eaten by wolves or lost in skirmishes with the National Park Service, so they returned to Juneau. It was clear that, wherever the Queen of Alaska was, She would not reveal Herself until the time was right. So Alaska waited, and prepared. And the question was asked: where would Her Capital be? Juneau was not grand enough, and Anchorage and Fairbanks still lay in ruins from the war, so the Prophet McPhee again set out into the wilderness, again with his shamen and slaves and government bureaucrats, to find a suitable place to build Her Palace. And again the shamen were eaten by wolves, and the bureaucrats bickered, and the slaves revolted, so McPhee went back to Juneau.

The quest seemed hopeless. McPhee had not found the Chosen One or built Her City, and all his shamen were dead. But, inspired by rumors of a secret messiah breeding program, he set off alone, on a third expedition, following the elusive trail of a powerful sisterhood of sorceress-nuns. Here the narrative grows sketchy, as McPhee’s accounts of interviews of dozens of gold miners, hermits, holy men, ice-mages, and the occasional talking bear led him in dizzying circles, endlessly searching for a treasure that chose to remain secret.

McPhee apparently never found the Mother of Grizzlies, and left Alaska in disgrace. There are rumors, however, that he drank himself to death, only to be resurrected by an unidentified hirsute girl, but those stories remain unverified. Even McPhee’s account must be questioned. Were his visions true? Did he truly foresee the birth and rise of Alaska’s savior? If so, She remains hidden, and perhaps none will know the hour of Her coming.

Where is the bear and the rider? Where is the voice that is grating? IA! IA! SARAH PALIN FHTAGN!

Rating Regarding Books Coming Into the Country

Ratings: 4.22 From 6059 Users | 292 Reviews

Appraise Regarding Books Coming Into the Country

This book has meant a lot to me as an Alaskan interested in the raggedy interplay between development and conservationism, although I had never read it in its entirety. Now I have. I would say this book at best offers a kind, sympathetic view of all sorts of Alaskans circa 1977, a period which I just barely remember from grade school. I still recall the statewide debate on whether to give "Mount McKinley" the new/old name of "Denali" as part of ANILCA, then called the D-2 Lands Bill, which was a

I was really hoping this would be about geology, along the lines of Basin and Range. It wasn't. It's divided into three sections; in the first, McPhee wanders around unpopulated Alaska with several other men in several canoes/kayaks. I think one was from the Sierra Club, one from the Bureau of Land Management, etc. They fished to supplement their food supplies, and camped along the rivers and streams. The second section was about the attempt to get Alaska's capital moved from Juneau. I now know

This book was a challenge for me. McPhee divided his exploration of Alaska into three sections--the first, stage-setting section on the northern tree line; the second, uses the search for an ideal site for a new state capital to explore urban Alaska; and the final section, on "the bush," really focuses on the motives and lifestyles of in-migrants to the state. I breezed through the first two parts; the relocation of the state capital (which never happened) in particular was literally a bird's

McPhee travels through Alaska, profiling the many, diverse people he meets along the way. Parts of it are dated, especially the extended section discussing possibly relocating the state capital from Juneau. McPhee is a little too sympathetic with some people, especially the gold miners who completely destroy the countryside for very little money, and who behave almost like terrorists. I had to grit my teeth through these long sections. Overall, like everything McPhee has written, it is smooth

I really admire John McPhee for his ability to paint vivid imagery in the minds of readers through his wordsmanship. What's more, he develops a visceral connection to his subjects that is more than apparent in text.Coming into the Country is no exception in this regard. It's doubtful that the true ethos of Alaska can be captured in three stories spread over 450 pages, but it seems that McPhee comes pretty damn close. The Encircled River is perhaps the most broad brush of the three, but still

This was written in 1976-77, so some of that eras hot-button issues arent as hot (maybe), but this is a fascinating in-depth look at Alaska. Id love to read a follow-up I know what lands have subsequently been protected, and I know they havent moved the capital from Juneau, but living in the lower-48, I dont really know how some of the other issues have been resolved (or if they have been). Once again, McPhee has an amazing ability to show both/all sides of an issue without allowing his

McPhees talent for writing about the natural world is only surpassed by his eye for people, who are the beating heart of his work. In Coming Into The Country, the characters who inhabit the vast northern reaches of the United States practically seem to jump off the page, generously rendered in all their imperfect glory. The warmth of these presentations contrasts richly with the frigid setting, and forms the heart and soul of the book.