Review by Annabel
Alaskan author Eowyn Ivey isn’t the most prolific; in thirteen years, she’s just published her third novel, but for me it was worth the wait. Being a large fan of novels where a natural magic blends seamlessly with the quotidian without becoming out and out fantasy, I fell in love with her debut, The Snow Child. Inspired by a Russian fairy tale. It was set in 1920s Alaska, a story about a childless couple who find a little girl in the snow. In 2016, Native American myths and legends informed her second book, To the Bright Edge of the World, set in 1885. It featured an expedition up the (fictional) Wolverine River to forge new trade routes for Forrester, with his young wife Sophie left behind at the fort. Common to both novels, the landscape, flora and fauna of Alaska played a major role and Ivey captured the beauty and ruggedness wonderfully.
It was no surprise to discover that her third novel, Black Woods Blue Sky also resides in Alaska in the same territory. Ivey based her fictional Wolverine River on Copper River which is near her home. What was a surprise though was that this third novel – which we’ve waited nine years for – is a contemporary story! It begins:
Birdie knew her mistake as soon as she cracked open her eyes. She was wholly sick, like she had the flu or been clubbed all around her head and body and, in the confines of the one-room cabin, she was increasingly aware of her own stink, how her skin was emanating the odor of cigarette smoke, digested alcohol, and vomit. She slid her arm out from under her daughter’s head, and Emaleen rolled onto her other side but didn’t wake. […]
The Wolverine Lodge had been packed last night. A dozen or so of the regulars had driven from Alpine and Stone Creek, a couple of long-haul truckers had stopped for the night, and Charlie Coldfoot and his buddies had come out from Anchorage on their Harleys for the first ride of the season. Nearly twenty people crowded into the small roadside bar for no other reason than to chase away the darkness.
Birdie is a waitress at the Lodge, where owner Della lets Birdie and her daughter Emaleen, who is six, stay in one of the cabins. Needing fresh air to clear her head, Birdie leaves Emaleen sleeping, grabs her fishing rod and heads through the woods for the creek.
The summer birds – thrushes and warblers and ruby-crowned kinglets – were returning after the winter, and they fluttered and trilled through the birch and spruce boughs. She had to climb over a storm-fallen spruce tree, but the wild grass was still low to the ground and the devil’s clubs hadn’t grown to their full spiny height, so the walking was fairly easy. When the mosquitoes found her, she pulled the hood of her sweatshirt over her head. Even with her ears covered, she began to hear the murmur of the creek before she could see it.
Returning with a trout to cook, she’d bumped into the reclusive Arthur Neilsen on the way back, but she wasn’t gone long. However, Emaleen had woken up and began to panic. She knows she must go to the lodge in an emergency, but is this one? Grabbing her imaginary friend, Thimblina, the child heads off carefully into the woods to look for Birdie, who of course arrives at the cabin to find her gone. Della is furious, but Arthur comes to the rescue, bringing Emaleen back.
Birdie needs to learn a lesson not to leave Emaleen alone like that, so Della takes Birdie off evenings and puts her on day shifts. Emaleen can sit at the corner table. This is a turning point for Birdie.
Now working days, Arthur begins to come into the Lodge, always sitting alone in the back with a camomile tea. Despite one of his ears being mangled, Arthur is tall, lean and fit with golden hair. He doesn’t say much, talking in a matter of fact way that might make you think he’s neurodivergent. Birdie doesn’t mind his laconic style at all, it’s a change from all the other guys around. They are obviously attracted to each other and tentatively begin a relationship. The only problem is that Arthur lives on his own up on the North Fork of the river; it’s a very long hike up there, or a short plane hop to the nearby airstrip. Soon Birdie is making plans for her and Emaleen to go and live with him up in the wilderness. Many try to dissuade her, as there is no electricity or running water, supplies will have to be flown in by Arthur’s father in his plane, and Arthur – well there’s something about him not quite right according to others. But Birdie is a backwoods girl at heart, and Emaleen loves Arthur as does she. She can hunt and fish with the best of them too. It’ll be the experience of a lifetime. However, she must be aware – up there is real bear country.
And I mustn’t tell you more. You’ll have gathered that Ivey has a very light hand with the otherworldly, and here it adds a sense of mystery to the narrative, that gradually becomes clear as the months go by, events play out and the truth behind old stories surfaces.
The setting as in my second quote above is full of wildlife, particularly all the flowers, and each of the novel’s three sections is prefaced with a lovely pencil drawing of native flora including ‘devil’s club’ (which may be covered in irritating spines, but is apparently widely used in herbal medicine for many complaints!). I loved the way that Birdie was so at home with nature and the way she and Arthur both teach Emaleen about it too.
I think as long as it features her native Alaska, Ivey could write any novel, be it historical, contemporary, or another genre; I adored the richness of the setting. Likewise, it was easy to like Birdie and Emaleen, and Arthur’s air of mystery. I loved Black Woods Blue Sky but hope it’s not so long to wait for her next book!
Annabel is a co-founder of Shiny and one of its editors.
Eowyn Ivey, Black Woods Blue Sky (Tinder Press, 2025). 978-1472279040, 304pp., hardback.
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