The Twenty-Ninth Day by Alex Messenger: This book completely blew me away. First Alex is seventeen years old, and in the Canadian Tundra with a group of friends, The Hommes, on a 600 mile canoe trip. Yep, 600 miles by canoe folks. And then on day 29, he is attacked by a grizzly, and survives. I have to admit, I felt like I was on this trip. We are treated as readers to the first twenty-eight days of the canoe trip – it’s ups and downs, ins and outs, the beauty and the physicality and fun that this trip was. The joy of the meals in the evening, the feeling of accomplishment – that is itself is an interesting read. (and reminds me of one of my favorite authors to read, Pam Houston) Then mix in the grizzly attack and the book becomes next level. The strength, mental and physical, that Messenger displays in this book is amazing and admirable and I would have been crying for my mom immediately, and wouldn’t shame anyone else for doing it either. I don’t want to give anything away so I won’t go into too much detail, but I was mighty impressed. And also by his friends, especially Dan, who was the leader of the group and a trained Wilderness First Responder, and had to treat Alex’s wounds in the middle of nowhere with limited supplies. Fantastic read! (Amazon Affiliate Link)

Dark Salt Clear by Lamorna Ash: Another stellar read. Ash feels herself drawn to the Cornish village and cove that she is named after and heads there to learn more about the people who earn their lives on the cold sea, fishing. I loved reading about a way of life that I knew really nothing about; I’ve sung along to sea shanties, I’ve watched The Deadliest Catch, I know every word to Billy Joel’s Downeaster Alexa, but really didn’t know what the lives of these men and women are like. And I loved learning through Ash’s eyes and experiences aboard the different ships, the different people she encountered. I was struck by one part in particular, where Ash works overnight in the fish sorting warehouse for the morning market – and the other workers talk about the monotony of the job, about how it is a way for fisherman to stay connected to their call of the sea even when they can no longer go out, how they sleep only a few hours in the day so that they don’t become shadow people. This is a beautifully written book about something that doesn’t maybe sound so interesting or beautiful on the outside. I loved it. (Amazon Affiliate Link)