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Beyond the End of the Road
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About the AuthorMICHAEL D. PITT The lure of a rural lifestyle, however, with golden sun reflecting on winter snow, inevitably proved irresistible. Kathleen said goodbye to commute traffic, deadlines, memos and office walls in 2000. Michael escaped 18 months later. They now live on 565 acres in the Aspen Parkland near Preeceville, Saskatchewan, where sled dogs Brownie, Grey, Sailor and Slick help them operate Meadow's Edge Bed & Breakfast. Kathleen and Michael Pitt are authors of Three Seasons in the Wind: 950 km by Canoe Down Northern Canada's Thelon River, published in 1999.
About The BookBEYOND THE END OF THE ROAD Beyond the End of the Road reveals impacts of isolated living: Will lifelong ambition for a 'winter of contentment' in the Arctic trigger scientist's mid-life crisis?
The very first childhood thoughts former UBC professor Michael D. Pitt can remember were to run away and live in the forest. Flash forward almost fifty years, and Pitt and wife Kathleen take a sabbatical to spend a winter of extreme living. Extreme cold and extreme isolation. The Pitts flew by Twin Otter into Colville Lake in the Canadian Arctic at the end of January 1999. By the time the ice went out of the lakes and rivers in mid-June their lives had been changed forever. Their story has been told in Beyond the End of the Road just released by Agio Publishing House of Victoria.
"Michael Pitt combines the bravado of a 19th century explorer with the sensitivity of a modern day man in this masterfully woven tale of an ordinary, middle-aged couple who leave their comfortable city life to spend the winter in a remote, one-room cabin in the Canadian Arctic," says wildlife ecologist and writer Tracey Hooper. "Unlike early adventure stories of man against nature, this is an honest, humorous, and deeply moving account of man and woman living with nature -- in all its harshest and most beautiful aspects. From dealing with the menace of a frozen outhouse to sledging across a frozen lake in a snowstorm to sharing romance at –45°C, Beyond the End of the Road, reminds us that waiting on the other side of our fears is the chance to experience the greatest gift of our lives -- the Perfect Moment." "Pitt's writing struck me as a wonderful blend of Henry David Thoreau and Farley Mowat -- a treasure of logical philosophy and dry humor, perfect for the armchair adventurer," writes Bruce T. Batchelor, author of Nine Dog Winter. "A mesmerizing account of the North's beauty and the winter Michael and his wife Kathleen lived in a tiny cabin above the Arctic Circle. Well-written and insightful, this book will delight anyone who has explored the northern latitudes or dreams of doing so," says Julie Angus, author of Rowboat in a Hurricane: My Amazing Journey Across a Changing Atlantic Ocean "Personal, humorous and witty, Pitt has crafted an Ode to Winter, sharing with us practical tips of wintercraft, philosophical musings on a suburban, Southern lifestyle, and personal observations on life, the North and the majesty of Winter," writes Alan Fehr, 21-year resident of Arctic Canada and Superintendent of Prince Albert & Elk Island National Parks "[Michael Pitt] wrote the book on Canadian winter at its extreme," says Ron Petrie in the Regina Leader-Post. Click HERE to read the full article "Michael Pitt's new book is an inspiring story of a couple fulfilling a dream of arctic adventure through all seasons -- perceptive, funny, personal and captivating." -- Dan Burnett, Wilderness Canoeist, Lawyer, Beaver Canoe Club Editor "This is one of those very rare books that will not only take you on a thoroughly entertaining, thought provoking, real life adventure Beyond the End of Michael and Kathleen's Road, but will also provide you with insights into your own Road. This is a very well told story and more than that, an inspiration. "You live with Michael and Kathleen in a small one room cabin with a wood stove and you share their daily routines, their happiness and their bliss. No electricity. No phone. No running water. The understated comments of the indigenous people as they look at some of the equipment Michael and Kathleen have brought with them are made very amusing by the skill and humility of our author and the natural diplomacy of the hosts. "Great good humour permeates every chapter of the book. You will love their daily diary and meet the animals and birds who are their principal visitors. The descriptions of the flora and fauna are excellent and well informed. Michael sees more in the landscape than the vast majority of his readers would see, and all of us can benefit from this. There is easily-worn scholarship on every page. This is a book for young and old, for Southerner and Northerner alike. All can learn from it. It addresses our human condition, which we all too often overlook. "In animated movies beautiful young heroines are attended on their walks by blue birds fluttering their wings to the beat of the soundtrack. Kathleen attracts Whisky Jacks and they make their own music against a backdrop of magnificent, natural orchestration. "Thank you, Michael and Kathleen. I loved your dream and admire the way you lived it. Everyone who reads your book will be the better for it." "I would recommend this book to all my friends with an interest in the outdoors.... Michael's story is easy to read and he makes what must have been highly repetitive days quite distinguishable by focussing on different matters, always with the underlying theme of 'have we enough wood' and 'how strong is the ice.' Perhaps there is too much sipping of tea for some tastes, but that is how one gauges time in a life where clock-measured time has little utility. Read an ExcerptCheck soon at Google's Book Search. Buy this Book
ISBN 978-1897435-36-6 eBook edition as PDF download at www.lulu.com/content/7434006
Reviews/AppearancesRECENT AND UPCOMING APPEARANCES
To arrange an interview with the author, please contact Bruce at Agio Publishing House, or the author at 306-547-2008 or mpitt755 (at) gmail (dot) com |
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