Bøger af Velma Wallis

"Based on an Athabascan Indian legend passed along from mother to daughter for many generations on the upper Yukon River in Alaska, this is the tragic and shocking story--with a surprise ending--of two elderly women abandoned by a migrating tribe that faces starvation brought on by unusually harsh Arctic weather and a shortage of fish and game."--

"No one should miss this beautiful legend." --Tony HillermanVelma Wallis's award-winning, bestselling tale about two elderly Native American women who must fend for themselves during a harsh Alaskan winterBased on an Athabascan Indian legend passed along for many generations from mothers to daughters of the upper Yukon River Valley in Alaska, this is the suspenseful, shocking, ultimately inspirational tale of two old women abandoned by their tribe during a brutal winter famine.Though these women have been known to complain more than contribute, they now must either survive on their own or die trying. In simple but vivid detail, Wallis depicts a landscape and way of life that are at once merciless and starkly beautiful. In her old women, she has created two heroines of steely determination whose story of betrayal, friendship, community, and forgiveness "speaks straight to the heart with clarity, sweetness, and wisdom" (Ursula K. Le Guin).

Diese wunderschöne Geschichte entführt uns in die aufregende Kultur der indigenen Bevölkerung Alaskas.Der Stamm der Gwich’in ist einer der schrecklichsten Hungersnöte aller Zeiten ausgesetzt. Das strenge Gesetz des Nomadenstamms schreibt in diesem Fall vor, dass die beiden ältesten Frauen geopfert werden, damit der Rest überleben kann. Ihr Häuptling hält sich daran und die „unnützen Esser" werden zurückgelassen. Doch die alten Frauen geben nicht auf und der Kampf ums Überleben mitten in der Wildnis beginnt.Velma Wallis (geboren 1960 in Alaska) ist eine US-amerikanische Schriftstellerin, die vom indigenen Volk der Gwich’in abstammt. Durch die tiefgehende Verbindung zu ihrer Mutter hat sie einen intensiven Bezug zu der Kultur und Geschichte ihres Stammes. Wallis lebte mehr als elf Jahre lang in einer Hütte in der Wildnis und übte sich als Fischerin und Jägerin. Sie veröffentlichte bisher drei Romane, die sich thematisch mit der indigenen Bevölkerung in Alaska auseinandersetzen. In „Zwei alte Frauen" verarbeitet sie ihre eigene Familiengeschichte.

With the publication of Two Old Women, Velma Wallis firmly established herself as one of the most important voices in Native American writing. A national bestseller, her empowering fable won the Western State Book Award in 1993 and the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Book Award in 1994. Translated into 16 languages, it went on to international success, quickly reaching bestseller status in Germany. To date, more than 350,000 copies have been sold worldwide. Bird Girl and the Man Who Followed the Sun follows in this bestselling tradition. Rooted in the ancient legends of Alaska's Athabaskan Indians, it tells the stories of two adventurers who decide to leave the safety of their respective tribes. Bird Girl is a headstrong young woman who learned early on the skills of a hunter. When told that she must end her forays and take up the traditional role of wife and mother, she defies her family's expectations and confidently takes off to brave life on her own. Daagoo is a dreamer, curious about the world beyond. Longing to know what happens to the sun in winter, he sets out on a quest to find the legendary "Land of the Sun." Their stories interweave and intersect as they each face the many dangers and challenges of life alone in the wilderness. In the end, both learn that the search for individualism often comes at a high price, but that it is a price well worth paying, for through this quest comes the beginning of true wisdom.