Voice in the Wild: A Memoir

by Laurie Sarkadi

After plans to live in Africa shatter, young journalist Laurie Sarkadi moves to the Subarctic city of Yellowknife seeking wilderness and adventure. She covers the changing socio-political worlds of Dene and Inuit in the late ‘80s—catching glimpses of their traditional, animal-dependent ways—before settling into her own off-grid existence in the boreal forest. There, she experiences motherhood and its remarkable synchronicities with the lives of caribou, dragonflies and other creatures.

As a mother, and as a journalist, Sarkadi speaks up for abused women and children, creating controversies that entangle her in long, legal battles. When she looks to animals and the natural world for solace, she encounters magic. Lessons from the natural world arrive weekly, if not daily: black bears roam her dreams, as well as her deck, teaching introspection; wolves inspire her to persevere.

This evocative memoir explores a more than two-decade long physical and spiritual journey into the wild spaces of northern Canada, around the globe and deep within.

212 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Lorraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I try to review the books I read, not just so others can read reviews but so I can remember how the book made me feel. However, I have never written a first review before and almost didn't have the guts until I started to think about what this book taught me. I was gifted this book for Christmas by my husband and all I knew going in was that the author was a local.

I was surprised about 30 pages in when I realized I knew her children, the places described, and the beautiful off grid home (I always wondered who lived there).

I loved this book and the way the chapters were formulated using animals as well as how it opened my mind to extra energy in the universe..away from my normally scientific, logical, brain. I'm excited to read Laurie's other novel.

My only critique is that this is one of the few books I've read where I felt like pictures would have been beneficial. I feel like it would be hard for someone outside of the Yellowknife area or far removed from nature to put a picture to the stories and experiences.

Thank for for a great read that I'll be thinking about for awhile! A solid 4.5 from me.

[Elinor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This intensely personal memoir has an unusual twist -- in each of twelve vignettes from the author's life, she explains what she learned from a particular animal. She has plenty of opportunities to observe animal behaviour, living as she does in an off-the-grid house some distance away from the nearest city, Yellowknife. The bear, the wolf, the deer, and even the simple seagull teach the author some important lessons throughout her life's journey. A career journalist, Laurie Sarkadi brings her trained powers of observation and her formidable writing talent to bear on Voice in the Wild. I highly recommend it.

[Fiona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. The author walks us through her life experiences with the help of distinct, undeniable signs from nature....and specific animals. The connections are often uncanny, even spooky, but Laurie Sarkadi manages to weave the story together so beautifully that I didn't feel like I was suspending disbelief. It all made sense somehow. Poignant, hopeful, loving, and super-natural.

[Sarah Frey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up this book after serendipitously meeting Laurie at a Yellowknife jam night. We spent the next few hours wildly talking (loudly) at each other about all our literary dreams, anxieties, challenges, and drive to pour our stories out of our heads and hearts, and onto the page.
I immediately had to read this force of a woman's memoir.

And unsurprisingly I engulfed it.
Laurie creates beautiful parallels with nature as she navigates all the turmoil of life, that we all experience - even if our lives are privledged ones. As someone from another generation reading this, it struck me that at no point do we "figure it all out". Our entire lives are an ongoing process of trying to understand who we are, and the space we occupy in this world. In Laurie's story, that journey comes a little easier when one opens themselves up to the lessons and knowledge nature holds.

Throughout my public readings, I stumbled into some male friends who commented that they "just didn't get [the book]". To which I replied "probably because it's not for you."
There is something profound in telling an authentic story, from an authentic female voice. And that profoundness has indeed resonated with this particular female reader.

[Lily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Voice in the Wild is Laurie Sarkadi's memoir of being a reporter and general creative spirit, and her life with her family living off the grid in Yellowknife.

This book read a bit like a Canadian "Eat, Pray, Love", and was just a little too meandering for me, particularly near the end--very much about the author's internal life and spiritual journey. While interesting, and well-written, I craved more glimpses of the Northern community Sarkadi lives in. For example, I loved the anecdote about her and two of her sons joining the Dene wildlife conservation officer to hunt for seagull eggs. Now I know how to test for which ones to eat, and what biting into a seagull egg-salad sandwich for the first time is like!

I was also really wish she had included a few photos, as I think it would be pretty hard for any aspiring off-the-grider not to be captivated by her many descriptions of her house and surroundings. I'm not a big fan of skating, but I definitely wanted to strap on a pair after her description of hurtling miles across the frozen lake in winter.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. I expected it to be a bit granola-cheesy, and I guess it could be considered such depending on the reader's worldview. But I loved it for its granola-cheesiness and its insights and personal lessons. Sarkadi is a wonderful writer, with the ability to paint a picture for me with just the right words, which I love in fiction and nonfiction. I now have a vivid image in my mind of her lake home and her family and her animals. We are gathering next week with the author and my book club and I cannot wait to discuss this book with her.

Right up to the last page, I was going to give this book to another friend who I know will love it ... but the ending did me in. I need to keep this one and will buy another copy for my friend. Because, like eagle feathers, something about this book tells me it must be gifted when you know it will touch someone on a fundamental level.

[Julaine Debogorski · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book while nursing heartbreak and grief and it stayed in my backpack all summer, while I built myself back up as an independent northern woman. It was exactly the soul food I needed. I grew up in Yellowknife, and feel lucky to have this wild and wonderful woman in my midst, for me to reach out to, share a tea with, and chat about the complexities of life and death with.
This book will be one that I keep around, and lend out, and re-read for years to come.

[Jess Van Den Broek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laurie Sarkadi weaves the world of natural beauty with the unseen wondrous world so very elegantly. Also, sharing the darker parts and hardships of a life. The imagery she uses makes you feel as if you are standing face to face with the beautiful animals she speaks of. I couldn’t put this book down, was fully and totally grasped immediately.
It truly is a must read.

[Gillian Burles · Rating 2 out of 5]

She’s a good writer and I liked the way she interwove her personal story with tidbits about specific animals. There was one chapter that kind of rubbed me the wrong way where I felt like a dear friend was used as a plot device and that certainly influenced my review

[Alexandra Noga · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5*. Neat