"The Experience of Arctic People" in a New Edition
Johannes Alme's book about the experiences of Arctic people is now out in a new edition. The book was published by Tapir Publishing in 2009, and quickly sold out from the publisher.
The Ishavsmuseet in Brandal is now publishing a second edition of the book. General Manager at Ishavsmuseet, Webjørn Landmark, says that the museum is both happy and proud to have the opportunity to republish the book. Since the first edition quickly sold out, there has been great interest and demand for the book. When the publisher showed willingness to transfer the rights to the book to Ishavsmuseet, we never had any doubts about publishing a new edition, says Landmark.
In this book, knowledge about the dangers of the ice is conveyed, and it is the sealers themselves who tell the story. The presentation is based on extensive and thorough work documenting the history of those who had the Arctic Ocean as a workplace from around 1900 until today. The author draws on his own knowledge of the subject, but equally central are the many personal testimonies from a number of former sealers. From different eras and sea areas, they give us insight into the drama and dangers that seal hunting could entail. Here are stories from Newfoundland, the Denmark Strait, the West Ice, the East Ice, the White Sea, the North Ice and the Svalbard area.
Webjørn Landmark at the Ishavsmuseet says that the experience of the Arctic people is still highly relevant. The author describes how the ice in the various fields in the highlands has behaved over 100 years. This is important knowledge for those who today look to the highlands for new industries.
"The Experience of the Arctic People" is an important contribution to Norway's polar history. The book provides a good insight into the lives of the Arctic people who fought against the dangerous ice, but also into life on board, the good trips, and also the cheerful stories.
At the Ishavsmuseet, the contents of this book are actively used to communicate our proud Arctic history to younger generations.
Johannes Alme says that “The Experience of the Arctic People” was a result of the research project PetroArctic by Professor Sveinung Løset at NTNU and Professor Ove Tobias Gudmestad at UNS. The knowledge conveyed in “The Experience of the Arctic People” is timeless and gives the reader a good introduction to the challenges the Arctic people faced in the fishing grounds.
-Based on a lot of good feedback from the first edition, I dare say that the book provides a good presentation of the subject. It would be better to say that there are no pictures of blood or dead seals in the book, says the author with a slight twinkle in his eye.
Both Alme and Landmark are confident that the book will continue to sell well, and it should be a great Christmas gift for anyone with polar interests, with roots in the sealing community, or who wants to gain knowledge about traveling by boat in the ice.
