Book Description
Travelogue, cultural meditation, and love story, On the Ice casts a panoramic view on one of the oddest communities in one of the most extreme places on earth. Sent to Antarctica as an observer by the National Science Foundation, Gretchen Legler arrives at McMurdo Station in midwinter, a time of -70 degree temperatures and months of near-total darkness. A lesbian struggling with a tumultuous past, she hopes to escape her own demons and present an intimate view of a place few will ever visit. What she discovers is a community of people stripped of any excess by the necessities of existence in a harsh land, where revered scientists are referred to as “beakers”; where cherished belongings are left without regret in a communal lost-and-found; and where women are rare but lesbians in high proportion. Forced to confront her own fears, Legler experiences firsthand how landscape and community allow a life to reset.
Customer Reviews:
At Home at the Bottom of the World.......2007-07-19
Nature writing is changing. The surest mark of that change is the fact that Gretchen Legler's book, On the Ice: An Intimate Portrait of Life at McMurdo Station, Antarctica, was chosen as the best book of environmental creative writing published in 2005-2006 by the Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment.
On the Ice is the story of what it means to find home, and heart, in the frozen place at the bottom of the world. With other artists, Gretchen Legler was offered the opportunity to spend a season in Antarctica under the auspices of the National Science Foundation Artists and Writers Program, to tell the story of the land, to try her hand "at making some human sense of its vastness and its terrible beauty." It was a quest, she says, not only to explore and discover new lands, but also inner worlds, "places that I hoped being so far from my ordinary self would help me find."
Antarctica as a place is extraordinarily far from the places our ordinary selves inhabit, and Legler wants us not just to know but to feel the distance, and to feel it as the explorers of a century ago must have felt it. She sleeps in a room that is only a stone's throw from the hut where Robert Scott set off in 1911 for his tragic bid to reach the Pole: "Good God, this is an awful place," he wrote. She spends time with other explorers who are looking even farther back, into the unthinkably remote geologic past of the Polar region, into samples of sea floor at Cape Roberts, goes naked into the coldest water on the globe, and ventures into ice caves in the Erebus glacier, blue caves, blue, blue "like an endlessly deep hole in your heart . . . a color that is like some kind of yearning, some unfulfilled desire, or some constant, extreme joy." And then there is the sea ice, glowing "peach and pink, nearly neon, buttery yellow, lavender, jade, and indigo," colors painted by Edmund Wilson, Scott's chief scientist, whose watercolors, she says are filled with, focused on light and color, color and light. And finally, there is the Pole, a "sacred destination," she says, not only for explorers but scientists and, yes, artists and writers, who find it the perfect place to look down into the mysteries at the earth's heart and up, into the mysteries of the universe, "the very farthest edge of darkness."
On the Ice is a luminous study of a remarkable place, a place that is so sublime as to almost defy human description. But as humans, we must place ourselves: we long to live in place and to make even the remotest place a home. And so the book is also about the men and women who live there, about the scientists, support staff, builders, workers, engineers, electricians, cooks, communications technicians--all the people it takes to make a home in an inhospitable place. These are people, by and large, who are willing, perhaps even anxious, to shed their ordinary selves and live in an extraordinary way, coping with the isolation and the cold and the loneliness, building a community of fellow-travelers, each with his or her own sometimes desperate reasons for coming to a place so unimaginably distant and different from the places where the rest of us live. These are funny people, weird people, misfits, heroes, people who live on hope and thrive on hard truths, people who have come away from the "real" world to invent themselves in a different reality.
But On the Ice isn't just about the place or the people. It's about Legler's own journey to the frozen wastes within herself, into her own frozen heart, which is thawed, incredibly, by the power of love. "How do you come to know place?" she asks. "How do you come to know self? . . . How do you let go of wounds and resentments and fierce anger, not begrudgingly, but as an act of grace?" She finds the answer to this age-old question in her relationship with Ruth, an electrician who helps her to shed "all that junk . . .all those layers of old self" and discover a new and loving self, a warm and passionate heart, in this frozen world. Some readers, particularly those who believe that books of natural history ought to exclude the historian's experience, may think that this part of the journey should have been omitted, as not quite worthy of the heroic spectacle that is the Antarctic. But that's the way it's always been, Legler reminds us: the personal has always been defined, she says, as "somehow gossipy or small, beyond or below the reach of proper recording." But why? Why do we deny the human perspective of place, since this is the only perspective we have? And why exclude the innermost experience, merely to focus on the outer? "Why obscure the intimate?" Legler asks. "Why shorten the story of the glorious complexity and depth of the human in order to make a neater, grander tale?"
Legler's journey--and her record of it--is all the more remarkable because it is an intimate journey, not only to the farthest place on earth but into the deepest desires and dreams of the human spirit. It's a singularly brave journey, as heroic in its way as the journeys of Scott and Shackleton and Amundsen, one more exploration of the truest human question: what it means to be at home on this earth. There are a great many books that will give you the cold, hard facts about the Antarctic. But as a book about place, a chronicle of life at the bottom of the world, and an intensely honest record of a spiritual journey, On the Ice is the most richly illuminating of all.
Susan Wittig Albert, co-editor of What Wildness is This: Women Write About the Southwest, University of Texas Press, 2007
Simply Horrid.......2006-12-27
I read this book while in Antarctica last year and had to force myself to finish it. It became a contest of wills to see if I could red the entire book. McMurdo is a weird place, no doubt about it. But somehow, while the author perhaps had the best intentions, it veered off into something that becomes rather incomprehensible. I spent over seven seasons on the ice and there are so many other stories to tell; the people, scientists, raytheon, projects, science, bureaucracy, idiocy, etc., that would make a great story. This book is unfortunately not a great story. Buy another book, any other book...
Her visit was intended to research the landscape; her book is about the crazy people she found there.......2006-05-20
McMurdo Station, Antarctica is home to freezing temperatures, months of nearly total darkness and regular near-hurricane force winds. It's also home to a permanent station, McMurdo, and for a season was home to author Gretchen Legler, who tells of this season and those who have journeyed to Antarctica to escape life. Her visit was intended to research the landscape; her book is about the crazy people she found there. ON THE ICE is thus about an exploration few others will make: you'll have to read the book to live her discoveries vicariously.
Diane C. Donovan, Editor
California Bookwatch
Horrible...Sorry, Really Horrible.......2006-05-15
I'm sorry to say this, but this is simply a horrible book. Gretchen Legler is too self-absorbed, too self-pitying, simply too selfish. Her grant from the NSF Artist and Writers Program surely wasn't intended to fund this whining drivel about how much her parents don't love her, about how she found lesbian love in Antarctica, about tangental ramblings that meander into nothingness.
Surely, it can't be about the prose, either. This writer, simply, uses, too, many, run-on, sentences...the overuse, of, the, comma, is, almost Shatner-esque, in, a, way. Here is a quote...one sentence, mind you, wherein even she has to remind herself TWICE what she's writing about midway through:
"When the first bit of core, real core, not just mud from the surface, came out of the drill, says Brian Reid, one of the bearded, bright-eyed New Zealanders at Cape Roberts, telling a story over tea in the camp's galley - when the first bit of real core came out of that noise, yellow-engine-pounding room full of small, tight men with hard hats, gloves, and mud-splattered faces, when that first long roll of dark clayey material came up, and when driller Pat "The Rat" Cooper, who's drilled all over the world, when Pat himself brought the core into the drill site lab, people started yelling all around, "He hit the hard stuff, He hit the hard stuff," well, you should have just seen it - "Pat and Peter holding it and jumping up and down just like kids, just like kids, just like kids."
Good Lord. That is ONE SENTENCE! Pages and pages and pages of this. It's maddening.
If you really want to read about life on "the ice," I strongly suggest Rolf Smith's excellent "Life on the Ice: No One Goes to Antarctica Alone," or Nicholas Johnson's "Big Dead Place: Inside the Strange and Menacing World of Antarctica." Both are wonderful accounts of the mysterious land down south. Neither will frustrate you, nor do they care one damn bit about why some self-absorbed writer's daddy won't call her. Boo-hoo.
Should be titled "How I became infatuated with Ruth (in Antarctica)".......2006-01-07
I completely agree with the comments made by the reader from Cleveland. This book is horrible! Roff Smith's book "Life on the ice" is infinitely better. NSF got ripped off funding this author.
Book Description
In October 1983 Ken Dryden gave us what was called the best non-fiction book ever written about hockey – The Game. In that same month Roy MacGregor published what was hailed as the best novel ever written about hockey – The Last Season. In 1989 these two writers teamed up to write another extraordinary book: inspired by Ken Dryden’s major CBC-TV series on hockey, Home Game takes us all the way from street hockey to the showdowns between Canada and the Soviets.
On publication, Home Game shot to the top of the bestseller lists, establishing itself as must reading for every hockey fan. Not only was this lavish book with over 95 full-colour photographs popular among ordinary Canadians: book reviewers loved it.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews:
Give me Dryden, he gives you peace.......2007-10-01
Give me any Ken Dryden book and three hours, and I will return with peace. I love his books about hockey. His commentary on hockey and life in Canada is true to the point. There are books that you read and then there are books that you relive. Dryden's books are expereinced. The flooded pond, the neighbor games, the eternal dream of playing in a old timers league, the continued goal of scoring another goal to win, of coming back in overtime to secure victory. I am 30 years old, and I still skate out on the practice rink with a Canadian jersey on with the imagined roar of the crowd cheering for my favorite player-Sidney Crosby-or really me. I might be 30, but my heart when it comes to hockey is still 10. This weekend I watched my nephews play hockey for the first time, one of them scored his first hockey goal ever in league play. He will never forget that goal. I know, I still live hockey, it lives in me, for I am Canadian. The cold chill of playing on cold rinks flows through my blood. It is more than hockey, it is "The Game."
this book is great.......2003-09-10
I can see why Canadians love there game so much through this group of essays they are very interesting I wish americans loved hockey as much as the Canadians do then I wouldn't be the only hockey fan I know
An amazingly apt portrait to a homesick Canadian..........2000-08-14
Although the title causes Americans of my acquaintance to laugh, this book really does a wonderful job of examining (if not always explaining) what the game of hockey means to Canadians. If you have read "The Game" and thought there was nothing more to be said about hockey and Canada, think again.
Especial highlights are the early sections discussing small-town Saskatchewan and the importance of the rink in drawing the community together; the stories of particular players with NHL dreams; and the memories of members of Team Canada during the 1972 Summit Series. Phil Esposito, the heart of that team, is not surprisingly the guy with the best stories about what it all meant. The following section about Soviet hockey, which elevates the faceless Russkies into real guys and fellow players, is almost enough to make a Canadian root for them. (Almost.) And the writers' take on their own recreational play, and what it means to them, is illuminating and sort of touching. Once again, as in "The Game," Ken Dryden manages to depict himself as an amazingly inept Hall of Famer, always panicking under pressure and getting in the way of his defensemen -- "I could talk and chew gum at the same time, but breathing did me in." There's no false modesty here, the reader gets the impression that Dryden held himself to impossibly high standards. Still, when he explains that he now plays defense because he has fulfilled his goalie fantasies, and playing defense allows him to have new ones, it's nice to know he still enjoys the game. (And I have to admit, I howled when I got to his dry remark on playing defense and who's responsible when a goal is scored: "I've changed my mind -- it IS always the goalie's fault.")
The photos that decorate this book are equally beautiful, from the prairie kids playing on a frozen slough to the professionals displaying their remarkable ability to a member of Team Canada (1972) jumping for joy as a Russian player offers a wry yet respectful salute. The photos are grouped according to section and I find it telling that the only photo of Dryden as a Montreal Canadien is one of him and a bunch of his teammates grinning in delight at having apparently won some kind of inter-squad scrimmage trophy. This photo is grouped with the recreational player section and tells an enormous amount about how Dryden felt about the game even as a professional.
Dryden and MacGregor describe Canada as "an improbable country," and they mean that in a good way. What holds us together as a nation are the bonds we have made among ourselves, and hockey is one of those bonds. I was reminded of that this year during the Stanley Cup playoffs, when a mailing list I subscribed to for the CBC news reminded subscribers of schedule changes because "there's hockey tonight." I hadn't watched much hockey in years but somehow, living in Texas surrounded by US culture, it felt like home to watch Larry Robinson hoist the Cup once again.
These are two great hockey writers, and they have produced a book that, even ten years later, is a joy.
Read this book if you want to start understanding Canada.......1999-12-29
"So what can a 10-year-old book on ice hockey really teach me about the sport and Canada?" I wondered as I started Home Game. The answer is pretty much everything. Dryden, who writes in a delightfully unhurried style, takes us through the game as it is played by enthusiastic amateurs, by teenagers desperate to break into the NHL and by the professionals themselves. And by probing how hockey took root here, Dryden provides the best analysis of what it means to be Canadian that I have ever read. My job in Ottawa is to explain Canada to the outside world and of all the tomes I have read so far, this must be the most illuminating. Rarely do you come across a book which so clearly explains what fires the soul of a country. Buy it now!
The soul of Canada exemplified.......1999-11-29
Ken Dryden's book simply strengthens the popular notion that he is not only one of the greatest goalies ever, he is the smartest man in the game, period. Even though this book is now ten years old, the political commentaries within seem fresh, as do the analysis of the intricasies of not only the actual game (a 1989 game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Montreal Canadiens is picked apart in breathtaking detail), to the day-to-day activities of a small hockey community, including a look into the life of a struggling NHL prospect (ex-NHLer Kevin Kaminski, late of the North Stars). Most impressive was the best look at the then-recent Wayne Gretzky trade I have seen (and I've seen a lot of them). This isa more than a look into hockey, it is a disection of the country whose identity has been moulded by this game. A must-read for serious hockey fans.
Amazon.com
Homesteading in Alaska is quite an experience, and Richard Leo uses a perceptive, reflective, humorous narrative to tell about his log cabin deep in the Susitna Valley woodland. Not surprisingly, weather rules, with 25 feet of snow and 100-degrees-below-zero winter blizzards. Leo talks about 4,000 square miles of spruce and birch at his doorstep, the adrenaline rush of dog-sledding, contemplative summer treks, dragonflies lighting on his shoulder, almost finding gold, and why talking to dogs is easier and more productive than trying to talk to a 2-year-old.
Book Description
From the acclaimed author of Edges of the Earth, a highly readable, fascinating, and often humorous picture of everyday life in a land that hasn't changed in five thousand years.
Customer Reviews:
dharma bums meets alaska bear tales.......2006-12-30
anyone who seeks the deeper meaning in life inevitably entertains the notion of leaving it all behind and heading into the woods. and in doing so, one comes to the conclusion that community and family are paramount to a fulfilling life.
with beautiful zen oriented imagery and a compelling narrative voice that might drive you into the wilds yourself, this book has stuck with me for years.
No Sequel This.......2005-03-28
I breezed through this in an afternoon, but alas found nothing I was looking for after enjoying the first book. Since I wrote a book (Alaska Tales 2001) about my numerous excursions to Alaska over the same period albeit earlier than Leo (1976) to the same area around Talkeetna and points north including the Brooks Range, I really expected more insight and journalistic inquiry in to the area and the people. Some of them I'm sure I remember, but none are recognized here.
I mean how many times can one describe the trail in and out of the cabin? This descriptive quickly turned circular from snow to flood to bugs to freeze-up and again. Even the trips away from the homestead are nothing more than brief summaries.
I wanted to know about his new wife, first son Janus, first wife Melissa, and how in the hell does he scrape together the few thousand dollars to live there, still? Certainy not from these books. What? I'm afraid there just isn't enough going on to chronicle in the limited field of vision from the ridge above Petersville road. There could be if Leo paid more visits to his neighbors and read some John McPhee as a primer. That's how it's done. This clearly isn't.
Kicked off an "adventure obsession" in me.......2004-06-18
After completing this book, I found myself eager to read other stories of grit and determination in the wilderness. This led to books about sailing and shipwrecks, homesteading and exploration, dogsledding and extreme sports. . . until I got the "adventure obsession" out of my system.
I read this several years ago, and still rave about it to anyone who will listen. It touched me that much. Now, having recently purchased a used copy of Leo's first book about his life in Alaska, "Edges of the Earth/a Man, a Woman, a Child in the Alaskan Wilderness", and reading not-so-great reviews of this book, I can't wait to read "Edges. . ."
Leo's descriptions of the flora and fauna, almost incomprehensible amounts of snow, and the glory of the northern sky are truly inspirational, and touched me on a very deep level.
Truly a worthwhile read.
Not as good as the first one, but interesting.......2004-01-17
The main difference between this book and Leo's first one is the degree of "personal" he gives it. In the first one, we read his reactions, emotions and dreams, his failures and victories, and especially his love for his girlfriend and son. In this second book, there's lots of beautiful Alaska, descriptions of animals, weather, struggles for survival, but none of the human touch. I wanted to read a sequel to the first book, to see how Rick's life turned out, but this isn't it. He barely refers to his wife (a native woman?), and his kids buzz around like the mosquitoes instead of being the center of his life. What happened Rick?? Did 15 (now 20) years in the bush harden you that much? Please write another book that fills in the gaps!
Don't Bother.......2003-07-23
His first book, Edges of the earth was amazing. So I thought this book would be a terrific sequal. Was I wrong. He complains and whines throughout the entire book. The story goes nowhere. A far cry from his first novel. Don't waste your time with this book if you are interested in life in Alaska, read his first book if you can get your hands on it (I know it is out of print). It is full of passion and drama.
Customer Reviews:
Heartwarming and hard to put down..........2005-12-11
I enjoy historical fiction and found this novella set hard to put down. Both were very romantic stories, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. I have to say this is one of my favorite novellas because of the strong romance element. The reader can't help but want the couples to get together. Great tension and evidence of attraction without going overboard. Heartwarming themes. Both had likeable couples. Very well done.
A double delight of nostalgia.......2005-09-21
From the back cover:
Lovely weather for a romantic sleigh ride....
Christmas sleigh rides - the tradition harks back to the days when life moved at a slower, softer pace. Two people, snuggled together under a warm blanket, conversing in the crisp winter air, can learn much about each other. But for two women of the nineteenth century, will there be a man to offer the invitation?
COLD AS ICE describes Estelle's heart. Since her fiance died in the Civil War, she believes Christmas is no longer worth celebrating and balks at helping her niece prepare for a holiday wedding. Who would think of offering Estelle a romantic sleigh ride?
TAKE ME HOME is Kathleen's one request. Undertaking her first teaching position away from home might have been a mistake. How can she have a real Christmas without the holiday preparations with her family, traditions of get-togethers and sleigh rides???
Will these women wither in self-pity this Christmas or open their hearts to the unexpected? Can they renew their faith in the true meaning of the season?
**************
Although written by different authors, the second story is a follow-up to the first one. Set in post-Civil War times, these heartwarming tales of wounded souls and frozen hearts that find healing and thawing through love and friendship have a Little House on the Prairie or Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman feel to them. It's refreshing to read romances involving mature, older characters. This book is Christian fiction, which isn't noted on the cover or in the product description. At times, the stories become quite preachy, but for the most part, they are simply about faithful people on a spiritual journey, without being too intrusive or overwhelmingly religious.
Book Description
The finer points of beer advertising appear with over 500 color photographs of the many sharp or pointed objects associated with beer. Here are beer promoting knives, letter openers, ice picks, scrapers, tongs, forks, cigar and box cutters, scissors, writing instruments, screwdrivers, nail clippers, toothpicks, can openers, fishing lures, sewing kits, combs, golf tees, and much more. Informative and truly entertaining, this book is peppered with beerbits, bizbits, and bullbits, information about the breweries and brands advertised, the makers, a price guide, and a detailed index.
Book Description
"It's wonderful how ice can be so warm..." Bobby Orr, from the foreword
This is a book about family, caring, the values we cling to, the people we love. In this collection of essays, writer Jack Falla's backyard hockey rink unexpectedly becomes a vital bridge to family and friends, a lens through which he looks at this life in a game he loves, a road leading back to the frozen ponds of a New England childhood and a mirror in which he stares down middle age. Or tries to.
Home Ice goes beyond being a sports book. It is a book for readers as interested in family, friends, and relationships as they are in last night's hockey scores.
Customer Reviews:
A Wonderful Little Book.......2006-03-15
Even if you live in a climate that will never allow you to build a backyard rink, this wonderful little book should be read. In a age where youth sports are increasingly dominated by organization and structure and where the attraction of video games keeps kids inside on even the nicest of days, this book takes us to a place where play is unstructured, where one can lose themself in the early morning hours or under the stars, where family and friends can gather to play, skate and even sometimes compete, where the rituals of building, maintaining and disassembling the rink mark the passage of time.
Ultimately this book is as much about a family and a bond between them as is it about ice skating or hockey. Read, enjoy and take something away from the experience.
Great Book.......2005-12-14
A good easy read. A must have for hockey fans in New England and for builders of backyard hockey rinks. Not a big reader, but I couldn't put this on down. Very well written.
Cant Wait for NEXT Winter.......2005-04-28
WE took our rink down a few weeks ago, I cant wait for next years ice. In the mean time I will read this again for about the 50th time!
Heart Warming thought.......2003-01-04
I have to say in my 28 years of being alive I can count on one hand the amount of books I have read on my own. But I recieved this book from my wife for christmas this year. I guess she had hopes on me reading more. Well she was right. I picked up the book thrusday morning about 11:00 am and finished it that afternoon. I really enjoyed reading this book. It actually took me back to when I was really young and skated on a small lake my grandparents lived on in Kinston Ontario. I feel almost compelled to build my own rink in my back yard this winter. I won't but it would be great to do it.
Thanks
Pure delight.......2002-02-06
I have been enchanted by this book. A newcomer to hockey, as both fan and player, I have been soaking up information and lore eagerly. This book satisfies both the urge to learn about hockey, and my wish to experience more of the true joy of the game. Taken out of the huge arenas with the expensive nachos and plentiful beer, there is a game that generations have loved to play and perfect. There are kids playing here, and adults, men and women. There are friends who help shovel the backyard rink, and those who show up later. And there are stories of other backyard rinks, of ponds, and of pros. If you like hockey, I don't see how you could go wrong with this book.
Average customer rating:
- And if he had run away I wouldn't blame him!
- THE MYSTERY OF THIN ICE STIMULATE A CURIOSITY
- The BEST Book ever!
- Her Faith Was Never Lost
- A Review of Thin Ice
|
Thin Ice (Laurel-Leaf Books)
Marsha Qualey
Manufacturer: Laurel Leaf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
 Mysteries, Espionage, & Detectives
| Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery & Horror
| Literature
| Children's Books
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Orphans & Foster Homes
| Family Life
| People & Places
| Children's Books
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General
| Ages 9-12
| Children's Books
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| Teens
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ASIN: 0440220378
Release Date: 1999-11-09 |
Customer Reviews:
And if he had run away I wouldn't blame him!.......2005-12-20
THIS review is going to be a little different...
I was a quarter of the way through another book when I happened across this one... and I had to finish it.
That's how you can tell a book is well written... when the pages keep turning even though you don't especially like the protagonist/narrator. And this one definitely should have been turned over someone's knee a bit more often and been spoiled a lot less.
The story is narrated by 17 year old Arden, whose older brother Scott raised her single-handedly after their parents were killed in a plane crash when Scott was 18 and Arden 6. Some unnamed friends of the deceased had offered to take Arden so that Scott could continue his original goal of medical school, but he turned them down. As I read this book I couldn't help but wonder just how many times he regretted dumping his dreams and plans in the trash to play single parent to a snarling ingrate.
Anyone who helps Arden, best friends and would-be boyfriend included, is treated as no more than a servant at her beck and call. When they tire of being taken for granted and walk away, Arden has the gall to claim SHE is the one owed an apology! It is only too easy to visualize how Arden must have exploited her long-suffering self-appointed parental surrogate. We come to realize that Scott would ALSO have walked out on anything important to him whenever the time came for him to perform yet another service for Arden.
Arden shares any awareness, let alone appreciation, of Scott's never-ending pampering only with the reader, never Scott, God forbid. At least the book has Arden cleaning up after a party just as Scott has done for her... including cleaning up vomit just as he had done more than once for her.
Striving to fulfill the roles of both parents, Scott had all he could do to provide her with the essentials; any finer points like consideration for others had to go by the wayside. Coddled endlessly as she was, Arden grew up with no clue that other people have needs, wants and concerns of their own. On top of her malignant selfishness, she is mouthy and needlessly sarcastic. At least we're treated to the sight of this unlovely combo blowing up in her face at one point in Part 2.
Arden eventually forsakes something very important to her in the blink of an eye to pacify a child's tantrum... but if you've actually DONE something for Arden, don't wait for a thank you. She believes the words will cut her throat on their way out.
Arden MAY learn a few things about herself as the book progresses... emphasis on "MAY" but does she grow through her experiences? Not if you ask this reviewer. She remains just as petty and spiteful in the second last chapter as she was in the beginning. She viciously snapped at Scott for trying to tell her something in Part One of the book... something she thinks nothing of forcibly dragging someone out of a sound sleep to ask at the end of Part Three.
If it weren't for the legal consequences to himself, Scott should have only take off for a few days when Arden was younger to give her some kind of clue that his services weren't magically doing themselves. I do wish more pages had gone into Scott's side of the story.
Was I moved by this book? Yes, yes I was. This book makes my heart go out to any older sibling forced prematurely into this role when parents die... especially when the younger sibling is an obnoxious, razor-tongued brat who believes obligation must forever follow a one-way street.
THE MYSTERY OF THIN ICE STIMULATE A CURIOSITY.......2003-04-09
This 261-pages mystery novel, Thin Ice, is written by Marsha Qualey. The story is told by main character, Arden. She is a seventeen-year-old girl who has grown up with her brother in small Wisconsin town after their parents died in a plane crash. Her brother, Scott, is twelve years older than her. One day, Scott crashes his snowmobile through the thin ice on a river, and every body presumes he is dead except for Arden. From this moment, the story falls into mystery. Because the book is written in first point of view, a teenager, the sentences are very outspoken style when Arden narrating. Also, many dialogues are used especially when the time the author has to explaining the situations, but they take important part, which is the giving clue of mystery. The main character, Arden, has a positive characteristic. She is creative, and independent because she has her own workshop, so she makes some frames, and sells them. She is also a stubborn teenager because she refuses to accept her brother¡¯s death. People think it¡¯s brought on by depression. At the same time, the conflict between Arden and the other characters begins. In addition, Arden is a dynamic character. At the beginning of the story she is just a common or frail teenager who has risen by her brother, but she becomes one great teenager who establishes her identity by herself. Because the author makes all the truth about the mystery of Scott¡¯s death clear at the end, each scene stimulates the reader¡¯s curiosity and the unexpected situations make the reader keep surprising. So, this book is fast-paced reading. The author writes this book to make the readers to consider about family, and to show the process of establish identity of one teenager. Even though the genre of the novel is mystery, this book is not too convoluted. Therefore, I highly recommend this book to all teenagers.
The BEST Book ever!.......2002-03-26
I've owned this book for only a year and I've read it over 10 times. 17 year old Arden is an orpha. The only family she has is her 29 year old brother Scott.After a near collusion death her brother Scott starts acting depressed. A couple of weeks later he dissapears while snowmobiling, the same way he almost died. His body is never found but the town of Penoke believes he's dead...except Arden. She searches for him but never suceeds that winter. I won't tell you if she finds him or not but it is an awesome book. Arden is a hilarious character with her wit and sarcasm.My favorite book!
Her Faith Was Never Lost.......2002-03-02
A review by Bree
Scott and Arden are brother and sister, their parents died in a plane crash when they were little. Scott has been raising Arden ever since he can remember. Arden and Scott have learned over time not or intrude or become too nosey about each other's lives.
This book was perfect for me. It was written in a language that I could easily understand. However, it was not so easy that I felt that I was reading in an elementary school level. The author explains things clearly and doesn't move the pace of the book too fast. There were a few unfamiliar words but it pushed me to read beyond my level. The subject of this book also made it perfect for me. I enjoy reading books and "real situations." Thin Ice is a serious book that really puts the reader into the characters shoes.
I would strongly recommend this cook to young readers who enjoy reading stories about real situations. I would recommend it for 6th grade and above because of the content and concepts of the book.
A Review of Thin Ice.......2001-12-11
Arden, a teenager left in the care of her brother after the tragic death of her parents, is now orphaned once more; but this time by her brother. His snowmobile was found floating at the top of the river. He is said to be dead, but Arden refuses to believe this and she is the only one who believes he is not deceased. Thin Ice by Marsha Qualey is the story of a seventeen year old girl determined to find her "runaway", not deceased, brother. Her determination takes to her to high and low places. The author shows many different ways of determination in a teenage world. This is a really interesting book and i really enjoyed it. It builds tension throughout the book and leaves you on the edge.
This was a great book and i really found it interesting. Its one that i couldn't put down.
Book Description
You don't have to be Tara Lipinski or Wayne Gretzky to enjoy taking a spin around the rink! Whether you want to teach a child, master a couple of twirls, play some hockey, or just skate recreationally, here are all the basics, complete with lots of full color photographs showing every detail of blades, boots, glides, turns, and bends. Learn the differences between figure and hockey skates; how to ensure proper fit; what clothing to wear; and the essentials of skate care. Help kids adjust as they step onto the ice the first time and take those inevitable falls. You'll find ways of training even the smallest youngsters and increasing their fun. Plus, you'll get tips on guiding more advanced skaters, choosing group or private lessons, and doing exercises that build skating skills. Nor is the adult beginner forgotten: you'll find everything from warmups to stopping and turning techniques that will have you skimming confidently across the ice in no time! 96 pages (all in color), 8 x 10. NEW IN PAPERBACK.
Customer Reviews:
Very Helpful for Me.......2003-04-09
I didn't know how to skate at all, and my instructor thought I didn't care, but I just didn't know the basics! This book really helped me learn to skate.
excellent book on ice skating.......2000-05-22
I didn't know ANYTHING about skating, but this book made me look good on the ice. Now I can skate, stop, do cross-overs and somebody even asked ME for advice the other day. I really recommend it to anyone getting started in skating.
Ohhhhhhhh boy!.......2000-05-03
Not the greatest guide to ice skating! There is a lot on what you should wear and look for in skates, but as far as the skating goes. . . There's practically nothing in it! But what's in it is written well.
Product Description
This report was created for global strategic planners who cannot be content with traditional methods of segmenting world markets. With the advent of a borderless world, cities become a more important criteria in prioritizing markets, as opposed to regions, continents, or countries. This report covers the top 2000 cities in over 200 countries. It does so by reporting the estimated market size (in terms of latent demand) for each major city of the world. It then ranks these cities and reports them in terms of their size as a percent of the country where they are located, their geographic region (e.g. Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East, North America, Latin America), and the total world market. In performing various economic analyses for its clients, I have been occasionally asked to investigate the market potential for various products and services across cities. The purpose of the studies is to understand the density of demand within a country and the extent to which a city might be used as a point of distribution within its region. From an economic perspective, however, a city does not represent a population within rigid geographical boundaries. To an economist or strategic planner, a city represents an area of dominant influence over markets in adjacent areas. This influence varies from one industry to another, but also from one period of time to another. In what follows, I summarize the economic potential for the world\'s major cities for "childrens multipack take-home ice cream" for the year 2007. The goal of this report is to report my findings on the real economic potential, or what an economist calls the latent demand, represented by a city when defined as an area of dominant influence. The reader needs to realize that latent demand may or may not represent real sales. For many items, latent demand is clearly observable in sales, as in the case for food or housing items. Consider, however, the category "satellite launch vehicles". Clearly, there are no launch pads in most cities of the world. However, the core benefit of the vehicles (e.g. telecommunications, etc.) is "consumed" by residents or industries within the world\'s cities. Without certain cities, in other words, the market for satellite launch vehicles would be lower for the world in general. One needs to allocate, therefore, a portion of the worldwide economic demand for launch vehicles to both regions and cities. This report takes the broader definition and considers, therefore, a city as a part of the global market.
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