katlau's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
elsaofie's review against another edition
4.0
Dad and daughter story of loss, grief, adventure, and survival. Intertwined with ancient stories of people who suffered in the cold mountains living before modern conveniences. Father trying to escape the grief of life, rejects all but his daughter to live off the land where they can't be hurt by losing or loving anyone. He gets injured during a snowstorm and ultimately realizes that the people in his life are important.
openmypages's review against another edition
4.0
"You're a link in the chain, but it's more than a chain. It's like a whole gigantic fabric. A huge quilt. And God, God's like the needle. God sews it all together. God connects us. It's a crazy a** quilt, and every square is different, see, but God connects us."
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I love a good wilderness survival story but Legends of the North Cascades is so much more than that. Dave is a man with a Purple Heart and the PTSD to go with it. He struggles with regular life and integrating into society after his three tours in Iraq, the monotony of life and living by rules that he doesn't agree with lead him to make an unpopular choice. Despite everyone's objections he decides to take himself and his 7 year old daughter off the grid.
Now, this isn’t Into the Wild, Dave and Bella settle in a cave in the mountains but are within a day's walk of town and are relying on some modern conveniences like library books. So they’re “selectively” off the grid, but their struggle is not just the battle of outdoor life but with their own emotions. Living with grief and anxiety is not easy and the devotion of these two to protect and challenge one another is both inspiring and hard to read at times. We see their extended family members trying desperately to intervene and their continued fight to live the way they want to. That need is less fueled by the desire to live off the land but rather fueled by their underlying fears and anxieties. We see the depths of isolation and how it can hinder rather than help healing. Can they find a way to overcome and heal and integrate back into society?
My favorite part of the novel was a parallel story about ancient peoples who lived on the same land who were also balancing how to survive and also how to integrate with others of their kind. Bella is experiencing this story as a sort of mechanism for coping with her own life. That story is raw and filled with tragedy and a need for connection with the Great Provider.
This is a great introspective read but delves into some heavy topics. As someone who struggles with some of the same issues, I found the book both resonated with me and triggered me a little so I had to take it slow but I appreciated the journey. Thanks to Algonquin Books for a copy of this novel. All opinions above are my own.
--------------------------
I love a good wilderness survival story but Legends of the North Cascades is so much more than that. Dave is a man with a Purple Heart and the PTSD to go with it. He struggles with regular life and integrating into society after his three tours in Iraq, the monotony of life and living by rules that he doesn't agree with lead him to make an unpopular choice. Despite everyone's objections he decides to take himself and his 7 year old daughter off the grid.
Now, this isn’t Into the Wild, Dave and Bella settle in a cave in the mountains but are within a day's walk of town and are relying on some modern conveniences like library books. So they’re “selectively” off the grid, but their struggle is not just the battle of outdoor life but with their own emotions. Living with grief and anxiety is not easy and the devotion of these two to protect and challenge one another is both inspiring and hard to read at times. We see their extended family members trying desperately to intervene and their continued fight to live the way they want to. That need is less fueled by the desire to live off the land but rather fueled by their underlying fears and anxieties. We see the depths of isolation and how it can hinder rather than help healing. Can they find a way to overcome and heal and integrate back into society?
My favorite part of the novel was a parallel story about ancient peoples who lived on the same land who were also balancing how to survive and also how to integrate with others of their kind. Bella is experiencing this story as a sort of mechanism for coping with her own life. That story is raw and filled with tragedy and a need for connection with the Great Provider.
This is a great introspective read but delves into some heavy topics. As someone who struggles with some of the same issues, I found the book both resonated with me and triggered me a little so I had to take it slow but I appreciated the journey. Thanks to Algonquin Books for a copy of this novel. All opinions above are my own.
cassidee_omnilegent's review against another edition
5.0
Rating: 9/10
Review:
“Of all the perils, and pitfalls you’ve foisted upon us, Great Provider, none is equal to the thoughtless cruelty of man. For only man among all the beasts worked so hard to cultivate the worst of his nature.”
It’s Blog Tour Day for Legends of the North Cascades by Jonathan Evison and I am thrilled to share this book with everyone. Full honesty; I have had some stuff in my personal life lately that has made it hard for me to read everything I’ve been wanting to read or have committed to. That, coupled with Michigan finally hitting the summer stride and reading just hasn’t been happening. BUT, as soon as I sat down with this book and was able to get myself in the reading mode, I devoured it in one sitting and just a few hours. It’s so completely worth the binge.
Legends of the North Cascades straddles multiple timelines. We focus on Dave, a man reeling from PTSD from being an American military man. To add insult to injury, his wife dies and he’s left to raise his daughter in a world he doesn’t really agree with. He decides to pack up Bella to live in the remote wilderness of the North Cascades. They bunker down in a cave and are happy for a time. The isolation is freeing but also crippling on Dave’s already fragile mental state, though he doesn’t realize this. Dave is one of those people who is extremely intelligent and talented, but has been harmed by society’s handling of veterans. He also has a jaded outlook on the military and their mission. He’s a gentle man who was forced to do brutal, life-altering things, only to come home and be burdened by debt and the constricts of a “civilized” society. He wants to feel human again, down to the most simple meaning of it. He wants to live off the land quietly and honestly, away from prying eyes and gossiping cruelty.
“‘You can’t own a person,’ she said.
‘What do you think a slave is?’ he said.
‘There’s no more slaves,’ she said. ‘Miss Martine told us they stopped slavery a long time ago. In the eighteen-hundreds.’
‘Of a certain kind,’ he said. ‘But there’s different ways of enslaving people.’
‘Like how?’
‘Well, like rules that don’t make sense, rules that say a person can’t live where a person wants. There’re laws that aren’t fair, laws that say certain people can’t do certain things. And debt, debt is a kind of slavery; its’ kind of like a chain that keeps people tied to a life they can’t afford.'”
We are able to making striking comparisons of Dave and Bella’s journey to the backdrop story told of a mother and son from the Ice Age. The cave people from the Ice Age can’t rely on going into their local town for supplies or help when injured or looking for food and their climate is much harsher than what Dave and Bella experience, but both sets have the same sense of isolation that can drive a person to desperation. They both experience what it is like to be ostracized from the people they come by. People claim to want to help Bella, but they are willing to overlook the distress that her dad is feeling. Both sets of families also have to learn when to accept help from a offered hand.
This is simply a gorgeously told story. It’s fast paced while being quiet and beautiful. Your heart will clench at the human feeling described here. The loneliness and indecision, the way that we hold trauma in our heart and our mind. The sheer force of will displayed by these characters will crack open a well of emotion within you. This is one of those books that just needs to be experienced, I can’t accurately explain the depth of this novel. A huge thanks to Algonquin for allowing me to take part in this. You can purchased this book on June 8th. You may also head over to my Instagram that day for a giveaway of a finished hardback copy of The Legends of the North Cascades.
“For the first time, Bella comprehended with aching clarity the ultimate estrangement of being human. She began to weep, not for herself, but for all of humanity.”
Review:
“Of all the perils, and pitfalls you’ve foisted upon us, Great Provider, none is equal to the thoughtless cruelty of man. For only man among all the beasts worked so hard to cultivate the worst of his nature.”
It’s Blog Tour Day for Legends of the North Cascades by Jonathan Evison and I am thrilled to share this book with everyone. Full honesty; I have had some stuff in my personal life lately that has made it hard for me to read everything I’ve been wanting to read or have committed to. That, coupled with Michigan finally hitting the summer stride and reading just hasn’t been happening. BUT, as soon as I sat down with this book and was able to get myself in the reading mode, I devoured it in one sitting and just a few hours. It’s so completely worth the binge.
Legends of the North Cascades straddles multiple timelines. We focus on Dave, a man reeling from PTSD from being an American military man. To add insult to injury, his wife dies and he’s left to raise his daughter in a world he doesn’t really agree with. He decides to pack up Bella to live in the remote wilderness of the North Cascades. They bunker down in a cave and are happy for a time. The isolation is freeing but also crippling on Dave’s already fragile mental state, though he doesn’t realize this. Dave is one of those people who is extremely intelligent and talented, but has been harmed by society’s handling of veterans. He also has a jaded outlook on the military and their mission. He’s a gentle man who was forced to do brutal, life-altering things, only to come home and be burdened by debt and the constricts of a “civilized” society. He wants to feel human again, down to the most simple meaning of it. He wants to live off the land quietly and honestly, away from prying eyes and gossiping cruelty.
“‘You can’t own a person,’ she said.
‘What do you think a slave is?’ he said.
‘There’s no more slaves,’ she said. ‘Miss Martine told us they stopped slavery a long time ago. In the eighteen-hundreds.’
‘Of a certain kind,’ he said. ‘But there’s different ways of enslaving people.’
‘Like how?’
‘Well, like rules that don’t make sense, rules that say a person can’t live where a person wants. There’re laws that aren’t fair, laws that say certain people can’t do certain things. And debt, debt is a kind of slavery; its’ kind of like a chain that keeps people tied to a life they can’t afford.'”
We are able to making striking comparisons of Dave and Bella’s journey to the backdrop story told of a mother and son from the Ice Age. The cave people from the Ice Age can’t rely on going into their local town for supplies or help when injured or looking for food and their climate is much harsher than what Dave and Bella experience, but both sets have the same sense of isolation that can drive a person to desperation. They both experience what it is like to be ostracized from the people they come by. People claim to want to help Bella, but they are willing to overlook the distress that her dad is feeling. Both sets of families also have to learn when to accept help from a offered hand.
This is simply a gorgeously told story. It’s fast paced while being quiet and beautiful. Your heart will clench at the human feeling described here. The loneliness and indecision, the way that we hold trauma in our heart and our mind. The sheer force of will displayed by these characters will crack open a well of emotion within you. This is one of those books that just needs to be experienced, I can’t accurately explain the depth of this novel. A huge thanks to Algonquin for allowing me to take part in this. You can purchased this book on June 8th. You may also head over to my Instagram that day for a giveaway of a finished hardback copy of The Legends of the North Cascades.
“For the first time, Bella comprehended with aching clarity the ultimate estrangement of being human. She began to weep, not for herself, but for all of humanity.”
tinybibliophile's review against another edition
3.0
My Review:⭐️⭐⭐.5/ 5 stars
Dave Cartwright, a former (3 tours) marine, father of a 7 year old precocious daughter, Bella, returned to Vigilante Falls, WA to find himself very unconnected to his surroundings. Then his wife tragically dies, leaving him a single father, with a formidable amount of debt and societal expectations. He decides to escape to the woods of the North Cascades and live in the cave with his daughter. The cave would contain all their basic needs like food, water, shelter, and they would make stops into town when needed for replenishment. The story comes from multiple POVs - including Dave’s brother, the sheriff, and other town locals and their perception of “Cave Dave.” It was sad to read about his failing mental health, and dealing with PTSD, without much support. The touching part of the story is the relationship between Dave and his daughter. There are many chapters that are devoted to a fictional ice-age area mother/son who were cast out of their clan and left to fend for themselves, also in a cave. There were some trigger warnings of violence/rape, which seems more alarming when it is all coming from Bella’s imagination. Although there were parts of the story I thoroughly enjoyed, Bella’s dream story could have easily been excluded and it would still have been a very strong story.
Thank you to Algonquin books and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. US Pub Date: June 8, 2021!
Dave Cartwright, a former (3 tours) marine, father of a 7 year old precocious daughter, Bella, returned to Vigilante Falls, WA to find himself very unconnected to his surroundings. Then his wife tragically dies, leaving him a single father, with a formidable amount of debt and societal expectations. He decides to escape to the woods of the North Cascades and live in the cave with his daughter. The cave would contain all their basic needs like food, water, shelter, and they would make stops into town when needed for replenishment. The story comes from multiple POVs - including Dave’s brother, the sheriff, and other town locals and their perception of “Cave Dave.” It was sad to read about his failing mental health, and dealing with PTSD, without much support. The touching part of the story is the relationship between Dave and his daughter. There are many chapters that are devoted to a fictional ice-age area mother/son who were cast out of their clan and left to fend for themselves, also in a cave. There were some trigger warnings of violence/rape, which seems more alarming when it is all coming from Bella’s imagination. Although there were parts of the story I thoroughly enjoyed, Bella’s dream story could have easily been excluded and it would still have been a very strong story.
Thank you to Algonquin books and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. US Pub Date: June 8, 2021!
gaetkoguy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A slower start with a bone-chilling finish, this is a story about the wonders of nature, combat trauma, and the courage to live life to the fullest
smorrison4's review against another edition
medium-paced
3.5
3.5 out of 5 stars
I loved the chapters where we saw the visions of this land from the perspective of the mother and son in the Ice Age, I thought it was really cool how Jonathan Evison tied the two groups to the land. I can understand how Dave felt that escaping to the woods would solve his problems. I lived in the Yukon and there are a lot of people with PTSD who move up there to be far away from people. I felt at times that the story was a little slow and I found my mind wandering.
Overall, the story was good. I liked the ending and felt it brought the characters full circle and now maybe they can deal with their grief.
I loved the chapters where we saw the visions of this land from the perspective of the mother and son in the Ice Age, I thought it was really cool how Jonathan Evison tied the two groups to the land. I can understand how Dave felt that escaping to the woods would solve his problems. I lived in the Yukon and there are a lot of people with PTSD who move up there to be far away from people. I felt at times that the story was a little slow and I found my mind wandering.
Overall, the story was good. I liked the ending and felt it brought the characters full circle and now maybe they can deal with their grief.