The Sea Runners: A Novel

By: Ivan Doig

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Synopsis: Four men flee indentured servitude in Alaska in a stolen canoe bound for Oregon in this &“brilliant and original&” historical adventure (The Boston Globe). In this timeless survival story, four indentured servants escape their Russian Alaska work camp in a stolen canoe, only to face a harrowing journey down the Pacific Northwest coast. Battling unrelenting high seas and fierce weather from New Archangel, Alaska, to Astoria, Oregon, the men struggle to avoid hostile Tlingit Indians, to fend off starvation and exhaustion, and to endure their own doubt and distrust. Based on an actual incident in 1853, The Sea Runners is a spare and awe-inspiring tale of the human quest for freedom. &“Ivan Doig&’s The Sea Runners has all the grace, charm, and spaciousness of his book This House of Sky, but combined with the drama of a great escape. The sea, wind, space, are palpable in this exquisitely worked book. And not the least of its charms is the liveliness with which it explores a forgotten corner of North American history.&” —Thomas Keneally, author of Schindler&’s List &“The Sea Runners . . . goes beyond being &“about&” survival and becomes, mile by terrible mile, the experience itself.&” —The New York Times Book Review