Frozen Stiff

by Sherry Shahan

What begins as a two-night camping and kayaking trek in the untamed Alaskan wilderness turns into a test of survival for Cody and her cousin Derek. While their mothers are in Juneau picking up supplies for Yakutat Lodge, the cousins sneak off in an old pickup. The taste of freedom is soon tainted when Cody's kayak is lost on the rising tide, washing away her life vest and precious supplies.

With only each other for support, the cousins face hunger and their fears of the unknown region of Southeast Alaska. As an advancing glacier floods the remote fjord, Cody and Derek find themselves facing menacing waves, immense icebergs, and wild animals. A sense that someone is following them adds to the formidable danger.

Genres: Adventure, Young Adult, Fiction, Family, Survival, Middle Grade, Mystery

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Sherry Shahan is a photographer and an author. She enjoys watching, photographing, and writing about the otters that play in the sea near her home in California. Sherry also wrote and photographed The Changing Caterpillar for Richard C. Owen Publishers.

Reviews

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another BoB read with my son. We both liked it. Interesting story but I feel like the detail was lacking. There was a lot of telling instead of showing. It had a great premise but needed more descriptive writing to get another star from us. We can be rather hard to please at times.

[aster]

episode 1/3 af aster der læser tilfældige bøger fra sædding center bogmarkedet og håber at de finder noget guld.

denne gang har vi dog fundet kul i form af en ultra mid bog som egentligt har et interessant koncept som virkelig shiner igennem i midten af historiens forløb, og gode interessante beskrivelser af alaskas natur. jeg var oprigtigt investeret i historien om de to teenagere der alene tager på naturcampingtur i alaska, hvor naturen omkring dem så vælger at gå gnok-amok, mens der samtidig er en creepy maskeret mand der holder øje med dem, men så thrower forfatteren fuldstændigt i den anden halvdel af bogen, med det mest svage, åbenlyse og langtrukne plottwist jeg nogensinde har oplevet. samtidig har hovedkarakteren også en parallel konflikt som er isoleret fra historiens forløb, hvor man ville forvente at bogen trak nogle tråde mellem, men den gør oprigtigt intet for at forbinde de to, og konflikten formår bare at være statisk igennem hele bogen, samtidig med at karakterene udvikler sig minimalt.

og det gør det ikke bedre at jeg læste den med en dansk oversættelse som havde stavefejl, forvirrende sætninger, og ikke engang orkede at oversætte imperialske enheder til metriske (HVAD FUCK ER EN MILE?!?🦢🦢🦢)
also, hvordan kan den have den danske titel af "ingen spøger med bjørne i alaska" og så kun have én enkelt side hvor der faktisk er en bjørn med, like what. vildt skuffende bjørne kvantitet

håber de næste par bøger bliver bedre og har flere bjørne

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great tween adventure.

[Bronson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, not super impressed with this one. My 10 year old enjoyed it but I felt like the characters were poorly crafted and I never got pulled into the suspense of the story.

[Arvand Ossoli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frozen Stiff
Sherry Shahan
Cody and her cousin Derek go on a kayaking trip in a wild fjord in Alaska. Things take a turn for the worst when Cody's kayak was lost in the river with a lot of precious supplies. They encounter menacing waves, immense icebergs, and wild animals while they try to kayak home with little supplies.
I enjoyed the book because it was realistic so I could imagine the events in my head very easily. The book was very descriptive and detailed.
"Now her hands were callused, from chopping kindling and other chores at the tavern."
I do recommend this book to people who enjoy survival situations and realistic fiction books. This book is not graphic so I think most teenagers can read this book. Overall I believe this book is a great book.

[Devin_Parker34 · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you were going on a camping trip, lose all of your items, and be stranded in the cold weather of Alaska what would you do? The book I read is called Frozen Stiff.
This book is based on true events! It's also hard to predict! Either you are being chased by a grizzly bear or freezing to death in the blistering cold.
I'm recommending this book to you because who doesn't like action and violence in one book? Plus, it's a true story which makes it scarier. This book is 160 pages long. I would recommend this book for pre-teens who likes action, violence, and scary books that relate to true events. Read the book Frozen Stiff for more information.

[Meredith Henning · Rating 2 out of 5]

Violet's reading page: http://happyheartsmom.typepad.com/swe...

[Madeline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two things in particular irritated me:

The way that the book’s conflict came about relied heavily on its characters acting stupidly, for no clear reason.

And I was expecting this to be a story of survival, but instead the characters are lucky enough to be spotted early on by people who happen to be in the area, and get taken care of by them. Most of the events of the book focus around these other people, rather than the task of surviving. It made the book’s conflict feel incredibly lackluster and conveniently solved.

I did enjoy the descriptions. The author’s experiences as a photojournalist came through in her narration and I felt the beauty of the landscape in the way she viewed it. I had a good time with this book, despite my frustration with the plotting.

[Laurie Woodward · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exciting middle grade novel that takes kids on an adventure into the Alaskan wilderness. Lots of interesting information for children about our 49th state. It teaches them about glacial calving, fjords, Native Americans, the flora and fauna of Alaska, as well as camping in the wilderness. Recommended for middle graders.

[Julie W · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I kept comparing this to Hatchet because there were a lot of similarities and this one fell short. I don’t know if I would have had enjoyed it more if the map in the front of the book actually jived with the descriptions. The map also kind of gave away what would be happening although you didn’t know the details of how.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It never pays to disobey. These kids learned the hard way; it almost cost them their lives. It wasn't clear if they learned a lesson or were even sorry for what they did wrong. It would have been good if the author had included that. Otherwise, a good story with suspense and mystery and a respect for the natural world out of our control.

[Kenzie King · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an easy, quick read, but I felt like there were some holes in the story.
Two kids go on a kayaking trip in Alaska without telling anyone where they were going when they run into trouble and have all sorts of bad things happen to them.
I did enjoy it overall as A juvenile read, but would not recommend it to anyone else.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars, rounding up
A great adventure story for the 10-14 crowd. A good mix of adventure, glaciers, kayaking, and suspense. A few parts were a little farfetched for me (Cody's overreaction to the Wildman for one) but reading this shortly after a trip to Alaska added to my enjoyment.

[Tessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an older book with serious 90’s vibes. Will hold kids’ attention but nothing ground breaking. Also, Dereck leaves with understanding of how dangerous their trip really was and how stupid they were to try it in the first place.

[Shauna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a teen read that shared adventure and mixed in some life lessons. It was written well in the teen mentality. It had some adventure, tender moments, scary moments and finally humbling moments. It was a decent read.The name is misleading, but that’s fine.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

We weren’t really great at kayaking when we were in Alaska, but after reading this I’m not sure if I would want to try it again.

[Sierra Charlesworth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this for my students Battle of the Books Competition.
BORING. That’s all.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

great AlaSKAN adventure!

[Ranette · Rating 5 out of 5]

An exciting adventure about two teens being lost on an ice surge and a mysterious person who helps them. Lots of cold and hunger.

[Joclyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice YA, quick read.

[Jessica Pritt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for kids! I really enjoyed reading it! Very interesting and intense!! Even though I know they would make it out of trouble, it still had me questioning!!

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a good story idea, but it moved very slowly and I never once felt the danger they were in.

[Steff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really disliked this book in the beginning but it really grew on me and by the end I was sad it ended.

[Ann Pessetto]

Not great literature, but an exciting adventure story.

[Suzanne Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exciting, enjoyable, and packed with tidbits about the area and lifestyle in Southeast Alaska.

[Derek Henderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A straightforward and solid adventure yarn for kids.

[Avrie Murdoch · Rating 4 out of 5]

i thought this book was awesome!! I love the characters and their personalties. Sometimes it got really intense and i liked it! Good job Sherry Shahan.

[Kiara Pratte · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't really like it at first it was kind of slow, but it got better along the way, I enjoyed reading about how these two kids try to get through tough times on their journey.

[Laurel Zeisler · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was fine. I've found many books written for kids that hold up well for adults also. This wasn't one of them.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

What begins as a two-night camping and kayaking trek in the untamed Alaskan wilderness turns into a test of survival for Cody and her cousin Derek. While their mothers are in Juneau picking up supplies for Yakutat Lodge, the cousins sneak off in an old pickup. The taste of freedom is soon tainted when Cody's kayak is lost on the rising tide, washing away her life vest and precious supplies.

With only each other for support, the cousins face hunger and their fears of the unknown region of Southeast Alaska. As an advancing glacier floods the remote fjord, Cody and Derek find themselves facing menacing waves, immense icebergs, and wild animals. A sense that someone is following them adds to the formidable danger.

Certainly suspenseful, but also informational regarding kayaking the inlets of Alaska as well as the varied landscape and environment of the state. I didn't connect well with the characters, but the story was unique and interesting.