Still Points North: Surviving the World's Greatest Alaskan Childhood

by Leigh Newman

Part adventure story, part love story, part homecoming, Still Points North is a page-turning memoir that explores the extremes of belonging and exile, and the difference between how to survive and knowing how to truly live.

Growing up in the wilds of Alaska, seven-year-old Leigh Newman spent her time landing silver salmon, hiking glaciers, and flying in a single-prop plane. But her life split in two when her parents unexpectedly divorced, requiring her to spend summers on the tundra with her “Great Alaskan” father and the school year in Baltimore with her more urbane mother.

Navigating the fraught terrain of her family’s unraveling, Newman did what any outdoorsman would do: She adapted. With her father she fished remote rivers, hunted caribou, and packed her own shotgun shells. With her mother she memorized the names of antique furniture, composed proper bread-and-butter notes, and studied Latin poetry at a private girl’s school. Charting her way through these two very different worlds, Newman learned to never get attached to people or places, and to leave others before they left her. As an adult, she explored the most distant reaches of the globe as a travel writer, yet had difficulty navigating the far more foreign landscape of love and marriage.

In vivid, astonishing prose, Newman reveals how a child torn between two homes becomes a woman who both fears and idealizes connection, how a need for independence can morph into isolation, and how even the most guarded heart can still long for understanding. Still Points North is a love letter to an unconventional Alaskan childhood of endurance and affection, one that teaches us that no matter where you go in life, the truest tests of courage are the chances you take, not with bears and blizzards, but with other people.

Advance praise for Still Points North
 
“Leigh Newman writes so lucidly about bewilderment, so honestly about self-deception, so courageously about fear, so compassionately about insensitivity, so hilariously about suffering and loss. Still Points North is a remarkable book: a travel memoir of the mapless, dangerous seas and territories between childhood and adulthood.”—Karen Russell, Pulitzer Prize finalist for Swamplandia!
 
“Still Points North begins in the remote woods of Alaska and then travels around the world and back again, tracking the adventures of a girl set adrift. Newman navigates her way through these exquisitely written pages with the strength and skill of a river guide, always keeping her bearings, and, like the salmon her father teaches her to catch in the wilderness, learns how to remove the hooks from her own life and set herself back in the water.”—Hannah Tinti, bestselling author of The Good Thief
 
“At once harrowing and tender-hearted, Still Points North is a memoir that reminds us of the fragility of family architecture and of father figures as mysterious, heroic, flawed humans. Leigh Newman illuminates the power of domestic discord to become a literal struggle for survival, brilliantly drawing a picture of a child tumbling through her family’s dissolution as she struggles to make sense of what family means.”—A. M. Homes, bestselling author of The Mistress’s Daughter
 
“Still Points North features a heroine as intrepid as you’ll find in any adventure story, which makes sense, since her parents’ divorce left her stranded on that desert island we call a lonely childhood. But this memoir isn’t so much about what was supplied as what was. Newman’s story is a testament to passion, the ethic of self-reliance, and the capacity for joy that her parents did share.”—Jim Shepard, author of You Think That’s Bad


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Biography, Biography Memoir, Travel, Book Club, Adventure

312 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Leigh Newman’s story collection NOBODY GETS OUT ALIVE is forthcoming in April 2022 from Scribner. Her memoir about growing up in Alaska, STILL POINTS NORTH was a finalist for the National Book Critic Circle’s John Leonard prize. Her stories have appeared in Harper’s,The Paris Review, One Story, Tin House, Electric Literature and McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern and have been awarded the Pushcart and the American Society of Magazine Editor's fiction prizes, as well as selected for Best American Short Stories anthology. In 2020, she received f the Paris Review’s Terry Southern Prize for “humor, wit, and sprezzatura.”

Reviews

[Deborah aka Reading Mom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leigh Newman's memoir reminded me once again of the damage parents can do to their children through lack of communication and empathy during and after divorce; this time told through the voice and seen through the eyes of the child herself. The author's description of growing up in such diverse environments (Alaska when with dad, Baltimore when with mom) and with such pole opposite expectations of behaviour from each parent(outdoor, Great Alaska Kid with dad, charming, well-educated,cultured young lady with mom) only added to the confusion and loneliness of her life. Never feeling she could meaningfully and deeply communicate with either parent about her fears and emotions, never knowing exactly what happened to their Great Alaskan Family, feelings hidden, putting on her dad face, her mom face, her school face, her job face, constantly on the go, never feeling she could trust, love, or be loved. I'm glad that in the end (although it took a long time), Leigh was able to break the chain of dysfunction and make the decision to let love and trust in, to start her own family and treasure what she now has, finding her unique place in the world. This poignant, candid, and well-written book was an enlightening read.

[tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Newman captivated me. What an honest, transparent, refreshing coming of age story!

Newman's writing style is beautiful. In one sentence she fills your heart with emotion, gives you a giggle and leaves you with a photo. Truly amazing.

"Dad is smiling, too, but a happy, terrified smile, as if the world might turn out to be a bubble and pop."

"Trying to disguise my long for their dumb young bliss with a safe, prickly coating of distain."

And this book isn't just for children affected by divorce or Alaskans. This story is for anyone who is searching for their place in the world and has struggled along their way. Highly recommended.

Miss Leigh, you have gained a fan. I look forward to any of your future writings.


I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway. A free book does not equal a favorable review.

[Julie Ekkers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Points North is a moving, reflective, and deeply thoughtful memoir by a woman for whom my heart broke, for whom I rooted, and for whom I was so glad, ultimately, to cheer, "Yes!" The author's parents divorced when she was young, and her childhood was then divided between her mother in Baltimore and her father (who eventually remarries and has other children) in Alaska. In Still Points North, the reader is able to watch the author reconcile her knowledge and impression of her parents and the events of her childhood that she accumulated as a child with what she comes to know as an adult, with adult sensibilities. It's a wicked moment all around when children realize their parents are fallible, and parents realize that the jig is up: their children have seen them be all too human. What is so compelling about Still Points North is watching the author fight toward the grace that comes with realizing that sometimes, people who unwittingly hurt us and disappoint us, can also be loving us, as best they know how.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a tough one to rate and I'm not sure why. Her story is surely unique and I'm always drawn to insights into very different American experiences (most Americans get little exposure to the myriad cultures and ways of life in our own country). I think I wanted to be able to get into her psyche just a little more than I did. There is such a spectrum of deep emotional damage among the characters, but I wasn't quite able to feel them - to connect with the drivers behind the damage. It was like getting close enough to someone to be compelled by them, but not close enough to now them. I wish I could have gotten through the surface of it all.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite as powerful as Sheryl Strayed's "Wild" or as eloquent and striking as Jeanette Walls' "The Glass Castle", this memoir was enjoyable nonetheless and quite moving at times. I give it a 3.5.. Some of the narrative choices in terms of pacing and timing were jarring sometimes, not letting the emotions build up on their own, ruining the element of cumulative tension that is essential to any good story. It's always fascinating to see how crucial and determining a childhood is in anyone's life and its subsequent effect on one's existential philosophy.

[Anna Rabinowicz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The writer's voice is luminous, and the stories about her childhood in Alaska are compelling and unusual. I found myself wrapped up in these tales...didn't realize how much time had passed until I looked up at the clock. Highly recommended.

[Jeanine]

I liked it very much and read it in a single night. I am not ready to summarize my thoughts yet.

[Aj Sterkel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memoirs are so hard to review! What am I even supposed to say? “Yes, author, your life is sufficiently entertaining. I approve.” Well, I approve of this memoir. It is sufficiently entertaining.

Leigh Newman spends her early childhood in Alaska with her “Great Alaskan Father.” He flies his own plane, hunts, fishes, and lives off the land. Leigh’s mother isn’t as enthusiastic about all the nature stuff. When Leigh is seven, her parents divorce, and she moves to a wealthy part of Baltimore with her mother. She suddenly finds herself in a world of private schools, petty girl cliques, and museum trips. When she grows up, Leigh becomes a travel writer and travels all over the world, but she never feels at home anywhere. This memoir explores how the places we live shape who we become. What happens if you don’t feel like you belong anywhere?

“If you can't be yourself with yourself, how can you be you with other people?” – Still Points North

Unlike a lot of other memoir authors, Leigh Newman can definitely write. The book is full of keen observations and vivid descriptions. The author helps the reader see Alaska and Baltimore and how difficult it is to transition between the two. There are some heartbreaking scenes in this book. It all feels very honest.

I think anybody who has kids and is going through a divorce needs to read this memoir. It shows the importance of communicating with your kids and letting them know why their lives are changing. You can’t just dump them into a new world and expect everything to work out fine. It won’t work out fine.

I was surprised at the humor and liveliness of the writing style. Divorce is a depressing subject, but the book isn’t depressing. Some parts of it remind me of Jenny Lawson’s memoirs (but with less over-the-top ridiculousness). So, if you like Jenny Lawson’s books, you’ll probably like this one. The ending is hopeful. Leigh learns that parents are human. They make mistakes. Just because a parent screws up doesn’t mean they don’t love you. Overall, this is an uplifting book.

“Pain only seems scary while you're waiting for it to happen. After it does, it's just hurt and recovery.” – Still Points North

I have the same problem with this memoir that I have with a lot of others. I don’t see the author/narrator the same way she sees herself. A lot of this book reads like a list of “all the ways my parents' divorce ruined my life.” But, from my perspective, the author’s life wasn’t ruined. It seems like her parents were pretty wealthy, even though her mother worked all the time. Leigh (mostly) went to great schools. She moved to New York, became a travel writer, got to see the world. She had a family of her own. This life doesn’t seem too messed up to me. Actually, it sounds like an amazing life. I’d like to see the world.

Despite my complaint, I really like this book. I read most of it in one night. The author’s voice pulled me in and made me want to keep reading.


TL;DR: Engaging memoir about divorce and belonging. I recommend it.

[Holly Booms Walsh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Refreshingly honest and open, this memoir was a mixed bag. On one hand, it's cleverly written with lovely wry descriptions and a knack for telling details that encapsulate a person's character in few words. It is also a captivating description of a very unorthodox childhood in the wilds of Alaska, with fishing and hunting and Great Alaskan plane mishaps. It is also a sad story of how her parents' divorce broke her emotionally, and a rather wretched description of a lost and lonely and selfish young woman who almost wrecks her own marriage. I found it hard to like the protagonist - though I am very happy that the epilogue seems to hint that she is pulling it together in the end.

[Kris Irvin · Rating 1 out of 5]

If there was a point to this book, I'm still searching for it. If you want to read a bunch of self important drivel with random stories from the past (that may or may not be true) thrown in between the nonsensical ramblings about Great Alaskan Fathers and how pointless marriage is, this book is for you.

If, however, you wanted a memoir about growing up in Alaska, or about reconciling with your father, or about anything with any meaning whatsoever, you're better off looking elsewhere.

What a waste of Great (Possibly Alaskan) Trees.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read. I really enjoyed the author's voice. She was really relatable and very funny. The ending was cute. Overall, an uplifting, feel-good book.

[Lynne Curry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, It was written with poetry and depth, a moving story, nonfictional but with a character arc. A truly good read.

[Doug · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Points North is bracing and beautifully written. Especially captivating is how Leigh Newman traces the evolution and decay of the various denizens of fin de siècle America as they variously slide, crumble or leap into a new century. Just as she has convinced you that she is but a victim of the narcissisms of her father, who emerges in the first part of the book as sort of a revanchist hippie, and her mother, who begins as a feminist free-thinker that can't quite embrace womanhood, she lets you glimpse the complexity of her parents' parents and then the -- ahem -- uniqueness of the younger Ms Newman's own parenting practices, she makes you see, finally, suddenly, that the buck only really stops when we take full responsibility for where are, who we are and what we are doing. There is a a magically lucid moment with a dolphin off of the coast of Ecuador that encapsulates the woman and is not to be missed. Read this book.

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was pretty disappointed with this book. It's a memoir about the author's childhood growing up in Alaska, so I thought it would be really interesting. But, it was more about how much her parent's divorce screwed her up both as a child and into adulthood. Her parents split up when she was 8 and she and her mother moved from Alaska to Baltimore, Maryland, but she spent each summer in Alaska with her Dad. Neither of her parents really talked to her about the divorce and she always felt like her loyalty was torn between her parents. She was a pretty dysfunctional adult and the last section of the book is about her struggles at the beginning of her marriage. Overall the tone of the book was sad and depressing and even though she decided to stick with her marriage it didn't seem great either. It wasn't a great book and I wouldn't recommend it.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the memoir and first book of a woman my age who grew up traveling worldwide and eventually settling in NYC. It takes you vividly through every step of the way, recreating the characters, the emotions, the places, tastes and smells. Leigh is a former travel writer and child of divorce, who grew up between tom boy Alaska where she hunts and fishes, and Baltimore, where she learns about antiques and literature (among other things). It is a fascinating journey, peppered with hilarious laugh out loud moments, several near death experiences, and a great deal of a struggle. As someone who has known the author for over ten years in NYC, I was amazed at her ability to bring memories to life! I felt I could reach out and touch them they were so true to life. Highly recommend!

[Kathy Piselli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually first read this book during a trip to Alaska when it first came out. I loved it then, love her writing and her turns of phrase (one that has stayed with me is saying something that's uncomfortable "fast, like ripping off a strip of duct tape"). Also, I never could get the Elizabeth Bishop poem that gives the book its title out of my mind. My father was dying the slow death of dementia which does give the family a long time to say goodbye, but in another sense the goodbye already happened in the past. He finally succumbed this year and I turned to this book for a reread. Somehow it reminds me of him - a long, slow, heartrending divorce, and the desire to return to a fairy tale.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Could not put it down. It really resonated with me as a story of someone searching for identity - the difficulty of weaving together the disparate parts of yourself to find out who you really are, and the joy of finally finding your home. The author is from a divorced family but you do not need to be a child of divorce to strongly relate to this book. I also loved the vivid and amazing imagery of Alaska. I wanted to go to Alaska before I read this book but her writing brings it to life in such a way that now I really can't wait to go! Highly recommend.

[Melody · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting, involving memoir of a chaotic childhood full of dysfunctional adults, disintegrating relationships, strange relatives and the odd bear. The POV is insanely tight, almost claustrophobic. The writing is pure but the feelings are muddy, full of quicksand. The ending came too soon, the story wrapped up in an endearing but still jarring epilogue. My review copy courtesy of ALA Midwinter.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This child-of-divorce memoir reminded me of other memoirs I've read, specifically, Blood, Bones, and Butter, My Berlin Kitchen, and Glass Castle. However, Newman's story is unlike any other; it is uniquely unusual, almost unbelievably so.

I definitely liked the second half of the book more than the first half, which is why I landed on 4 stars instead of 3.

[Jenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an Alaskan girl, with a Great Alaskan Dad, whose parents divorced when she was young, this book hit home. A lovely story. A good read for anyone whose parents are very different from each other.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Points North is a masterful blend of craft, substance, and emotional resonance. It contains all the essential ingredients of a great memoir: a life shaped by singular and captivating circumstances, disciplined and confident prose, a distinctive narrative voice, and expert structural control. The book is abundant in detail yet never indulgent. It reveals without overexposing. It is funny without overtly trying to be funny (unlike most contemporary memoirs). At times, the prose itself feels Alaskan: raw, captivating, and full of dramatic contrast.

Memoirs are tricky. The value the author gains from writing is not the same value the reader derives from reading. Newman seems acutely aware of this and leans a bit too heavily--I would argue--on restraint. She avoids over-explanation and self-justification, but in doing so leaves portions of her characters’ inner worlds just beyond reach. There is something preventing a deeper connection to the characters, some aspect of their psyche —the motivators and "why's" —that goes unexplained. We learn much about them, yet never fully know them.

That said, there are too many legitimate reasons for this choice (privacy, artistic intention, the simple fact that not all memoirs aim for psychological excavation) for it to weigh too heavily in my critique.

I was struck by other reviews that highlighted the epilogue’s “happy ending” as central to the memoir’s value. That emphasis feels misplaced. The cultural appetite for redemption narratives — the comforting arc toward conventional happiness — is powerful but reductive. The notion of a clean “happily ever after” is not only illusory; it risks obscuring the ongoing labor that happiness and healing from trauma require.

I found the true value of this memoir to lie elsewhere.

The writing and storytelling alone are singular and captivating enough to distinguish it. But more compelling still is the insight it offers into the relationship between childhood pain and adult formation. Challenging childhoods often make for interesting adulthoods. Many of us carry pain from childhood, but those who have not been crushed by it often fail to consider how it has benefited them.

Newman's unconventional upbringing might haunt her adulthood, but it also equips her for it. She becomes a travel writer, living the adventurous life others covet. This job--and her later career as a novelist —seem uniquely suited to the abilities forged in her specific, challenging, nontraditional childhood. Had her upbringing been carefree, would she have developed such a discerning lens? Would she have learned to navigate disparate worlds so fluidly? Would she have cultivated the fortitude to chart such a nonconventional path?

Feeling lost and alone in the world is not uncommon. Transforming those conditions into fluency across worlds — into curiosity, movement, and self-authorship — is. That transformation, rather than any tidy resolution, is what lingers.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m torn on this book a little bit. I enjoyed the parts where she talked about Alaska because some of the areas were familiar to me. Although her Great Alaskan experiences were very different than the ones I grew up having. Reading about her inability to stay in any one place for any amount of time and have hardly any personal items made It very difficult to connect with her. It was a little frustrating reading about all of her challenges with any kind of close relationship. Again, most of which stems from different experiences and being unable to relate to hers. I was relieved when she decided to make a go of it with Lawrence after all. I was frustrated with her initially when she had decided to end things between the two of them. Especially because she was the one who pushed them into their marriage. I do love that she’s been able to travel the world and see so much. I think I would enjoy a book about these travel experiences more.

[LoLo Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every once in a while along comes a book where every other sentence either makes you laugh or you nod your head in total agreement. Newman's memoir nailed both for me. Every Alaskan should read this book, if for no other reason than to empathize with the plight of the author as she is torn between her adventurous life in Alaska and her Lower 48 life in Baltimore. Thanks to her parents' divorce, she has no choice. As difficult as it was for her, she learned to be flexible and to adapt to all kinds of situations. The wit of this author is unlike any other Alaskan author I've read. For me, it was one of those books where I re-read sentences because they were so unique. Even if you've not experienced the Great Alaskan lifestyle with a Great Alaskan father and gone to a Great Alaskan school or been bit by a Great Alaskan mosquito, you'll enjoy the universal truths of how hard coming of age can be and how you react to it. This is an enjoyable, entertaining read.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Moving from place to place, you develop routines to ease any confusion. Like never opening your suitcase your first day home. An open suitcase leads to long hours doing load after load of tedious laundry, which, in turn, only leads to your leaving for somewhere, anywhere else because you feel too overwhelmed about everything that needs to be done to get your life in that particular location started up again." 97

"[...] the smell of her skin like the world's original perfume." 172 (Re. her mother)

"Just as soon as everyone stops hugging us and crying on us and touching my dress as if it were made out of butterfly wings and finely woven, never-realized dreams." 177

179-180 (beautiful plane metaphor)

251 (beautiful ending)

[Kallie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a childhood combo of roughing it and rich experience and adventure enjoyed by few people in our comfort-oriented, safe-living society. Newman's writing style is very engaging, but a bit cleverly overwrought and noisy and magazine and headlong for my taste; it did keep me reading I have to say, but prefer a quieter deeper experience. I would read more by her though, because she's insightful and damn! worldly as a person can be without coming off as snobby or precious. I have to admit to a bit of jealousy over all this travel and adventure; and whatever the pain she expresses over that relationship's ups and downs and trauma, her close relationship with a dad who taught her so much and included her in so much . . . few people experience that, either.

[Sherri Puzey · Rating 5 out of 5]

183 // “Sometimes, there’s a story underneath the words of husbands and wives—and fathers and mothers and grandmothers and dogs and children—and, in my small, inglorious experience, regardless of how it ends, regardless of every indication that seems so emphatically to contradict it, that story is almost always a love story.”

STILL POINTS NORTH is a memoir of adventure and love and belonging. @leighnewmanlives writes so vividly about growing up in Alaska, the difficulties of navigating divorced parents, and how her childhood impacts her view of connection, home, and love as an adult. People talk about how books can be either mirrors or windows, but I loved that this book felt like both. My childhood could not have been more different than Leigh’s, but the things she wrestles with and seeks to understand as an adult felt very familiar. Her writing—from fascinating life experiences to insights and realizations she shares with such vulnerability—is stunning. I couldn’t put this one down and highly recommend it! I feel so incredibly lucky to know and work with Leigh in real life. I can’t wait to read her next book — a collection of short stories out in April!

#stillpointsnorth #memoir #bookstagram #bookrecommendations #bookstagrammer #amreading #girlswhoread #amreading

[Roberta · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great memoir about navigating the path through childhood to reconciliation, adulthood, love, marriage…After her parents divorce during her childhood, the author splits her time between Baltimore (with her mom) and Alaska (with her dad). Her family lived in Alaska before the divorce.

There is no way to explain why I loved it so much. Perhaps because the author is so honest about her own feelings and failings throughout, but also because she is a fearless adventurer, whether she’s in Alaska, Baltimore, or New York City.

Read this and read her collection of short stories, “Nobody Gets Out Alive”. Fabulous!

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I want to read her newest fiction book, so thought I'd start with her first book, which is a nonfiction memoir. I enjoyed the tales of Alaska and the resourcefulness of its people. I did not enjoy the rest of the book which dealt with her losses, self reflection, agonizing relationships, and floundering through life. Maybe it would have been better to skip this memoir, and dedicate the time she had to therapy to work through her many issues. The epilogue was a bright spot as it shows her maturing and hopeful for her future. I think with some therapy, she could have gotten to that place much sooner. I'm still looking forward to reading her recent fiction release.

[Jocelyn Jane Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the language in Still Points North by Leigh Newman. And I related so much to the sense of splintering and fragmentation due to divorce. Her story, set partly in Alaska and partly in Baltimore, really underscored the contrast of two different places and the contrast of two different parents. In the end she seems to contain and embody both of those worlds. This excellent book made me think about how much our childhoods impact us for many years (yes, perhaps for the rest of our lives). I highly recommend and I’m looking forward to reading her short story collection “Nobody Gets out Alive”.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok memoir but disappointing. I loved her funny Alaska story, Howl Room, in best American Short Stories last year and thought this would be more the same. But written seven years ago, only the first part deals with her Alaskan childhood, and as it is written from the point of a child as she deals with the breakup of her parents marriage. The second part deals with her life as a publishing person and travel writer and the tensions of her marriage, perhaps tying to her childhood. That’s not what I came for — I wanted colorful Alaska — and I skimmed it.