Fifty Years Below Zero: A Lifetime of Adventure in the Far North

by Charles D. Brower

Fifty Years Below Zero is an engrossing account by Charles Brower, the "King of the Arctic," of his life in the north. Brower shares his knowledge of whaling, pioneering, and Alaska Native life and customs before statehood, chronicling a period of important and rapid change in Alaska history with insight and humor. His story is also full of high adventure and rich with details about the many visitors who became his friends--explorers, whalers, traders, and missionaries. This volume is an excellent companion to the oral biography of Harry Brower, Jr., the son of Charles Brower, entitled The Whales, They Give Themselves (University of Alaska Press 2004).

Genres: Adventure, Memoir

324 pages, Paperback

First published March 15, 2007

Reviews

[Ronald Kelland · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was surprisingly delightful. It is an autobiographical account of Charles Brower's life in Barrow, Alaska. With a fairly legitimate claim to being the first non-indigenous person to live permanently in the region, the book continues to the point where Barrow is a well-established community. Barrow chronicles the changes in Inuit society as they adopt European technology and begin to receive European educations. While not a trained anthropologist, Barrow does a laudable job of recording Inuit ways of life - domestic patterns, hunting and fishing practices, band relationships and politics and spirituality. While some of this interpretations must be carefully interpreted, Barrow does acknowledge that his own biases are probably colouring his views, a refreshingly honest mea culpa that many academic anthropologists of the period were not capable of admitting. As a Newfoundlander, it was interesting to see people, such as Captain Bob Bartlett, and vessels, such as the whaler Karluk and the US Revenue Service cutter (and former Newfoundland sealing ship) Bear make frequent appearances throughout. Barrow is a reasonably talented writer, and though the chronology of his account can be a bit hard to follow at times, his book was a wonderful account of northern Alaskan life and a very enjoyable read.

[Mike Orta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an adventure book of an amazing life. Charles Brower lived among the Eskimo. He respected them and their ways. He married an Eskimo and together raised a family. He was there when Alaska changed from old traditional ways to new modern way of life and not all of it for the good. This is one of the best books I ever read.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fifty Years Below Zero, by Charles D. Brower, is a must read! The history of Alaska would not be complete without the adventures of Charles Brower. His hair raising experiences in the far north make for a very interesting true account.

[Betty Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fifty years below zero. A lifetime of adventure in the far north

I'm into history of Alaska and the history of North pole South pole Arctic the life of the people it was pretty good read

[Robert Lenzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful tail of a life well lived

This man has talked to president's, he has hunted whales and he lived in a unforgiving place for five decades. He tells his story well and leaves you wanting to know more.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful autobiography....under the category of "you couldn't make this up"

[Zach · Rating 5 out of 5]

An easy read with great perspective on the adventures of everyday life way up north. A fun book.

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an amazing life and story, told in a way that made it seem like time stood still!

[Max Kutch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful autobiographical account of a true Alaskan

[Jerry]

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[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating and engrossing. Brower, one of the great characters of the Artic, recounts a remarkable history of the north coast of Alaska during his 58 years spent there. Upon arrival in the 1880s, we glean a first hand knowledge of a little understood and superstitious Eskimo culture. Whites who came to whale in the region were afraid of them and would rob them every chance they had (either through trade, the raiding of burial sites, or happening upon food/skin caches). Brower's interest in the natives occurs early and he learns to travel, hunt, and whale not only with them, but in their own style and traditional methods. Respect earned goes both ways and soon Brower finds he has a great many friends and shared resources among the various villages scattered along the north and west coast of Alaska. Of particular note, Brower may be the only white to whale with the Tigara whale hunters who hunted using flint weapons and techniques shrouded in taboo handed down for generations.

Calling Barrow, the most northerly tip of Alaska, home, Brower encountered a great number of visitors in his later years (1900s). Canadian Arctic explorer and ethnologist Vilhjalmur Stefansson was an early visitor and one who remained a lifelong friend. Brower was on hand when Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen became the first to traverse the Northwest Passage and docked at Barrow. George Wilkins used Brower's Barrow camp as base operations for his polar flight exhibitions, and Greenlandic polar explorer and anthropologist Knud Rasmussen (sometimes called the 'father of Eskimology') stayed with Brower during his expedition from Greenland to study the Eskimo. Uncannily, Brower seems to have made friends with everyone whether native or white and whether they arrived by boat, sled, or plane.

This account of life lived is full of humor, tragedy, and adventure (for instance: being stuck on a berg in the ice flow for 12 days). Arguably most fascinating is the impact on the Eskimo way of life after the whites arrival and their transformation from what was then being called 'stone-age' to chritianity to 'civilization.' Devastating is not too light a word to describe the effect.

I did, however, whence in various places. Over his lifetime, Brower was sending a great many artifacts to museums and depositories and some of these came from burial sites. Not all of them mind you, but enough and his casual disregard for leaving the sites intact was distressing.

However, tales of rescues of native and whites abound. Saving villages and communities from 'hooch' and diseases rightfully bestows Brower a man of leadership and true humanity. This is certainly one of the best descriptions of life in the Arctic that I've read.

[Whitney Elmore · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a high school student living in Barrow Alaska. I read this books as a part of an Iñupiaq literature course in high school. I picked to read this book because it looked like it would be a pretty good book. At first the book is kind of hard to get into, but after a while the book starts to get better. There are things in this book that will really suprise you. I dont usually like to read this type of book, but the book suprised me. The book is about Charles Brower who came up to Alaska as a young man and ended up staying here for 58 years. He learned a lot from the Eskimos and he married an Eskimo woman and helped the community as best he could.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an adventure read, this was a fun book. However, I would not suggest it as an ethnographic study. Brower's attitudes towards the native people are pretty telling of the times. He isn't too crass, but he isn't too kind either. I am glad I read this book, as it helps to understand the driving force behind the colonization of the North Slope of Alaska. Long before the big industry of oil, money was to be made from the whales and this is the story that Charlie tells.

[Robert Rich · Rating 5 out of 5]

First-hand history of Barrow

What an amazing epic life that Charlie Brower lived in the Alaskan Arctic village of Barrow. He saw it all, and this book describes it colorfully and clearly. For years, he engaged with the natives, hosted distinguished visitors, and subsisted in a very tough climate. To read this book is to begin to understand the adventure and the joy of the Arctic.

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read about Charlie Brower's adventures in Barrow Alaska where he lived for 50 years. He documents part of his life in the far, freezing part of Alaska taking the reader to 1940. I love the ending, "No wonder our white population has grown until at the end of 1940 Barrow boasted ten women, nine men and six children. Sometimes I think we're getting a bit too crowded for comfort." I only wish he had of written more about his wife.

[Jason Slemons · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting book, this guy lived through so much. Interesting guy, with a great perspective on things. Probably would be considered very racist by today standards. But whatever you think about the man, this is a classic in this genre.

[Mike Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Detailed description of the life in remote Alaska native villages around the turn of the century at the height of the whaling industry. Amazing account of one man's change in attitude from survival to adaptation and thriving.

[Jolene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read following The cruelest Miles. Set in Alaska, Charles Brower spends 50 years living at Point Barrow and is witness to many historical events.

[Jack Word · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

[Chrisann Justice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book is an essential read for anyone living in Barrow, Alaska. It tells so much of the history of the people and the place!

[Fletcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting. Love all the real anecdotes.

[Donovan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book and the stories of the authors wild adventure, in an untamed world of the northern most United States settlements.