Dark Boundary

by Anne Hobbs Purdy

First published in 1954, this book is an intriguing glimpse into the early days of the Alaskan village of Eagle, along the Yukon River. Anne Purdy, author of bestselling book Tisha, tells the story surrounding the lives of the Eagle Village Indians. She describes the end of the Gold Rush era changes that took place in the early part of the twentieth century, painting a vivid picture of life’s struggles here and of a woman who reaches out to those in desperate need of love and care.

A tale of joy and sadness, with a final twist.

Genres: Native American

84 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1954

Reviews

[Gwen Haaland · Rating 3 out of 5]

In 1976, Anne Hobbs Purdy had "Tisha" published. That story was based on Anne's experiences as a teacher as told to Robert Specht and still is one of my all time favorite books.

"Dark Boundary," on the other hand was actually fully written by Anne Hobbs Purdy herself (in 1954) and unfortunately, there is a difference in the quality of the writing and in the pacing of the story. "Dark Boundary" tells a compelling story, but Purdy's writing is uneven in places, at times jumping from one thought to another without finishing telling the reader what was going on in her earlier paragraph. This novella could have been better edited, but it still gives a fairly credible glimpse of life and prejudices in this Alaskan outpost at the turn of the century. Also deals compassionately with adoption of Eskimo children, "half breed" and handicapped children.

In summary, "Dark Boundary" was a good book, but not nearly as powerful and polished as I was expecting it to be after reading the famous "Tisha." Though Anne was known as a great storyteller, one must keep in mind that Robert Specht actually penned "Tisha" after listening to her stories...

[Alice Frati · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprised to learn that Anne Hobbs Purdy wrote another book about her life in Alaska. This one takes place when she is in her 30s. She is now in Eagle and Fred is not with her yet. This book really gets deeper into her emotions, hardships, difficulties between Anne and some of the Natives. I’m not sure how she got the nickname Glory. That is not explained. But my goodness, Anne took in quite a load of children. You learn a lot about life in Alaska and how Anne the Native Americans survived. I don’t think I could have done it. They were hardy people.
Addendum: Apparently this version of the book is not the original version. I found out that one of her foster kids decided to rewrite the original, thus the written by is Anne Purdy rather than the original books author’s name Anne Hobbs Purdy. You can get the original from Amazon. It is 86 pages I believe. Not like this book which was 109. So just beware to get the correct book. I ordered it and cannot wait to get it.

[Linda Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Matter of Taste

I enjoyed reading this book, but it might not be for everyone. At times it read more like a diary than a fictionalized biography. It spans some 25 odd years, and it’s basically the story of how a supportive orphanage for Alaskan Indians and mixed race children came to be. What made it fascinating to me was that it offers wonderful insights into life just after the turn of the century in northern Alaskan areas. What was it like to be in 70 below weather, living in a log home with no modern conveniences? I also was not aware of how terrible the racist feelings were against the Indian population. The setting, the characters and the daily life vignettes rang very true.

[BR · Rating 1 out of 5]

This particular title was NOT written by my mother! The original DARK BOUNDARY was published in the 50's. A foster family took mom's original title and produced this without our consent. Please do not support.

[Beth Withers · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this short book after reading Tisha, and I found this book to be quite confusing. I could never quite figure out what the purpose was. The book reads like someone's diary, as if it's autobiographical, but since I had just finished Tisha, I knew that wasn't the case. If Purdy was trying to write a fiction book, it reads more like an outline for a story than a finished work. It's written as though the reader knows what is going on and knows who the people are. I was quite confused through most of it. It may be a realistic look into the lives of a group of Native Alaskans in the early 1900s, but I'm not even sure of that.

[Zella Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. I was expecting this to be the continuation of Anne Hobbs Purdy's own story as told in Tisha, but instead, it is her attempt to write a story about a friend of hers. That's never clarified anywhere, and the narrative is very choppy and underdeveloped. There are similar themes about an outsider teacher who gets in trouble for showing compassion to Native children and ends up adopting many, but this is set many years earlier in Eagle rather than Chicken and covers a much longer span of time. There are some good vivid details about life at the time, and the book has its own odd charm, but the last chapter is absolutely bonkers and not in a good way.

[Nancy Wilkinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are expecting another Tisha, you will be largely disappointed, but not completely. The love of the land is still there, as are the love of the Indians and for her family, but the storylines are choppy and there is no real flow to the book. That being said, it is an enjoyable read and certainly helps to understand the plight of native peoples in Alaska and most likely the world over.

[sheila hobson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in 2 sittings.

I found the story of the Alaskan frontier fascinating. The writing is simple and the story jumps around at times but it is worth the read.
The racism is heartbreaking but there are true heroes as well, white and Indians alike. I recommend this book.

[Hilary Montgomery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sequel to Tisha

Interesting to hear the story behind Tisha from the woman herself. How sad that people still feel so much hatred for people not of their own "tribe". Only complaint could have been longer with more details of their lives. Thanks

[Diane Weaver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not very easy to follow as she jumps all over the place in it.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this hoping it was the continuation of Anne Purdy's story that she told in Tisha, which I read while traveling through Alaska with a natural history class in the early 1980s. It isn't, but it is the story of a friend of hers who came to the small town of Eagle as a teacher and at first looked down on the "dirty ignorant" Indians and the children she was supposed to teach. Gloria's life over the years and especially the friendship and guidance of Sharon, an Indian woman, changes her in many ways. The hardships she and the community endure are on a par with the prejudice they encounter from the white people. Have we learned anything since then? With racism growing in this country, I wonder.

I wish this book had been more fleshed out. The ending is rushed and the surprise denouement is completely unexpected. I don't know how much of the book is based on fact, but it creates an authentic depiction of life in that remote part of Alaska in the early part of the 19th century.

[Nancy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I find it disturbing that even the Goodreads description indicates Anne Hobbs is the author of Tisha; she is NOT.
Hence ALL of the reviews indicating such are inaccurate in their comments regarding "another" book OR "discrepancy" in writing style.
Incredibly sad that one only need LOOK at a copy of Tisha to see that the writer is Robert Specht.
PS ~ the one star is based on these statements; were I too rate Tisha as told by Robert Specht I would gladly give it 5 stars!
Thank YOU, Mr. Specht for bringing this story of such an outstanding Woman to the public. Blessings.

[George W Carey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Life in Alaska

The story had many good possibility . It certainly gave the reader a glimpse of the challenges and hardships of this wild but beautiful country. I felt the writing lacked clarity and for me was confusing. Perhaps a good editor could have made it a more enjoyable book.

[Charlie Ferguson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very good book!

Very well written and hard to put down. A good book for any age of reader. Shows how life really was in Old Alaska.

[Lisa Garriott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great 👍

Best book I have read in a long time. Thanks. Really enjoyed from beginning to end. Can't wait to read, Tisha

[Tamara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting to read about how life was in that area in that time period; however, this did not read like a novel. It read more like diary. There was no real storyline. It was just a bunch of choppy paragraphs that jumped from one thought to the other. There was also a lot of typos and poor editing.
On the other hand, the novel Tisha that is about Anne Hobbs and written by Robert Specht as Anne told her story to him is probably my favorite novel of all time.

[Patty Jenks · Rating 3 out of 5]

hard to follow

I liked the book. I only gave it 3 stars because there was so many characters. It was hard to keep them all straight.

[Tammy Jorgenson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ended rather quickly but a short book loaded with Alaskan cultural delights!

[Akchev · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intriguing glimpse into a past time.

[Michelle Ule · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't bother reading this novel if you've read Tisha--this is simply the forerunner to the book, much poorly written.

OTOH, it's a fast read.

[Ra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Tisha first and then found this. I enjoyed the book immensely but the ending was odd. It felt like the book just stopped out of nowhere!

[Annette French · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting book

I first thought it was about Anne Purdy as a continuation of the book Tisha. It is not but still an interesting book of Alaska early years.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

A different writing style for sure. Read like short stories. Happiness and sadness in remote Alaska. Will racism ever end.

[Jenny Allen]

Another fun book

As someone who has lived in Alaska, I enjoyed these tales. There are so many good hearted folks though it would be odd in our town in the 21st century to have a baby adopted out of the tribe. All the same, enjoyed the book much.