You Can't Wallpaper My Igloo: Tales of Living and Teaching in the Alaskan Wilderness
Katherine Norberg
Paperback
(1st Books Library, Oct. 9, 2003)
You Can't Wallpaper My Igloo combines asense of humor with an informative and colorful account of life beforetelevision invaded rural Alaska and took away much of its character. LeavingNew Mexico in 1969 for the unknown of teaching positions in the far reaches ofAlaska, Bob and Kathy Norberg drive up the Alaska Canadian Highway with barenecessities, ready for any kind of adventure. Their first assignment, a smallEskimo village in the north Pacific around the corner from the Bering Sea,introduces them to seal hunting, steam baths, and spinach souffl as a snackfrom the tiny school cafeteria. They enjoy the culture shock and absorb as muchof a new culture as time allows. A move to the interior of Alaska, anAthabascan Indian village introduces them to seventy degrees below zero, whiteouts, moose, caribou, and bear roasts obtained in the most basic fashion. Thebirths of their first two children do not keep them from their everydayteaching duties, seasonal hunts, family dramas, and unsafe excursions by boat,plane and snowmobile. The new culture adds to their repertoire of six years ofexciting, if not harrowing, experiences. Hating to leave the 'bush'but deciding that the children might be better served in a 'conventional'environment, they move to a small town on the Kenai Peninsula, where they hopethe children will benefit from a more developed school system and opportunitiesfor 'normal' activities. They have a third child, build their ownhouse on the beach, and settle in for a more conventional lifestyle, neverforgetting the wilderness experience that has enriched their lives beyondmeasure.