Moments Rightly Placed: An Aleutian Memoir

by Ray Hudson

Along a thousand-mile chain of treeless and windswept islands, Unalaska is perched at the end of the world, or, as some prefer to say, the beginning. In 1964, Ray Hudson, 22, landed in Unalaska village with a brand-new college degree, eager to teach. The Aleuts had seen many outsiders who had come but seldom stayed more than a year. Yet Hudson was no short-timer. Captivated by Unalaska and the history and traditions of its enduring people, he stayed. As the years passedone, then five, ten, then twentyhe was embraced by his Aleut neighbors, sharing their celebrations and tragedies, teaching their children, exploring their language, and, much to their surprise, learning their delicate art of grass basketry. Ray Hudsons intimate memoir weaves together landscape and language, storytelling and silence, ancient mythology and day-to-day village life. Ultimately he pays homage to the people he came to teach, and who, in the end, were his teachers.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Nature

223 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1998

Reviews

[Myra Scholze · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book up before I headed out to Unalaska for a winter and I absolutely loved it. Although I found it to be occasionally confusing, it always became clear with time, and the story that was woven through the chapters was incredible. I fell in love with people I'll never meet and places I'd never been, and it's made me so excited for my upcoming winter in Dutch Harbor.

[Andrea]

I highly recommend reading Hudson's memoir of living in Unalaska.

[George · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worth reading if you are headed to Unalaska

[Kathy Kysar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The intricate art of grass basket weaving becomes a way for teacher Ray Hudson to better understand the cultures of the Aleutians in the 1960's. This book reads, at times, like an instruction manual. At other times, it reads like a basic historical account of the individuals that came and went in Unalaska and the surrounding islands. Finally, it reads like an intimate portrait of the ups and downs as a culture tries to find itself again after being relocated during WWII, torn apart by alcoholism and the unceasing winds but drawn together by religious tradition and ceremony. This book turned out to be more than I expected and I will be using parts of it as mentor texts in my upcoming college writing classes, in which I happen to teach students in the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands.

[Jolene · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not sure if I will be able to get through this book. I really had high hopes for this memoir, but I am not connecting with the author after the first 5 pages. I know it's early, but I don't know if I want to expend the energy on it right now!

1/1/11 I just couldn't get into this book. Oh well.