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Cold Coast
In 1932, Wanny Woldstad, a young widow, travels to Svalbard, daring to enter the Norwegian trappers’ fiercely guarded male domain. She must prove to Anders Sæterdal, her trapping partner who makes no secret of his disdain, that a woman is fit for the task. Over the course of a Svalbard winter, Wanny and Sæterdal will confront polar bears, traverse glaciers, withstand blizzards and the dangers of sea ice, and hike miles to trap Arctic fox, all in the frigid darkness of the four-month polar night. For Wanny, the darkness hides her own deceptions that, if exposed, speak to the untenable sacrifice of a 1930s woman longing to fulfil a dream.
Alongside the raw, confronting nature of the trappers’ work, is the story of a young blue Arctic fox, itself a hunter, who must eke out a living and navigate the trappers’ world if it is to survive its first Arctic winter.
Alongside the raw, confronting nature of the trappers’ work, is the story of a young blue Arctic fox, itself a hunter, who must eke out a living and navigate the trappers’ world if it is to survive its first Arctic winter.
272 pages, Paperback
Published November 1, 2021
46 people are currently reading
653 people want to read
About the author
Robyn Mundy
8 books65 followersWild places form a big part of my life, and my writing. My novel Cold Coast is set in the high Arctic and tells the story of Svalbard's remarkable first female trapper Wanny Woldstad. Wildlight is set on Tasmania's remote Maatsuyker Island, home to Australia's loneliest lighthouse where my partner Gary and I spent ten months in isolation as caretakers and weather observers. I have wintered and summered in Antarctica, the setting for my first novel The Nature of Ice. Each year I work aboard ice-strengthened ships that head off to polar regions on adventure tourist voyages. My guiding role helped me co-author a young readers' illustrated book Epic Adventure: Epic Voyages. I am currently working on a new historical novel…you guessed it, set in a rather chilly place.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 99 reviews
February 19, 2022
It was 1932 when Wanny Woldstad persuaded trapper, Anders Sæterdal, to agree for her to be his partner, travelling to Svalbard to spend a year in the Arctic. Wanny had to prove to Anders that she was a hard worker, determined, strong, excellent with a rifle and prepared for anything they might come across. The four months of polar night was only one thing to get used to. Anders had two dogs for pulling the sled and Wanny brought Mira, her dog, who was unsure and timid to start with, but equally as strong and part of the small team as the others by year’s end. Trapping bears and Arctic fox, fur seals and all types of birds, all during the freezing, frigid air of the Arctic was exhilarating.
When the vixen had her kits, there were three strong ones and a runt. The vixen didn’t bother with the runt as she was sure it wouldn’t survive. But she did, and the young blue Arctic fox, a canny hunter herself, eked a life out of what she could find in her hunting. She could watch the hunters, knowing the woman was a soft touch for scraps. But could she navigate the traps the hunters had set; would she survive her first Arctic winter?
Cold Coast is an incredible read by Aussie author Robyn Mundy, based on the true story of the first woman trapper on Svalbard – the story of Wanny Woldstad and Anders Sæterdal. Wanny herself wrote a memoir in the 1950s, touring the country to talk about her life as a trapper in the Arctic. Most poignant was the inclusion of the chapters on the young blue Arctic fox the hunters called Little Blue, the lives of the foxes and other Arctic animals. I was captivated by this beautifully written novel, totally absorbed by the rawness of Svalbard’s blizzards, glaciers and much more. Cold Coast is a book I can’t recommend highly enough.
With thanks to Ultimo Press for my ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.
When the vixen had her kits, there were three strong ones and a runt. The vixen didn’t bother with the runt as she was sure it wouldn’t survive. But she did, and the young blue Arctic fox, a canny hunter herself, eked a life out of what she could find in her hunting. She could watch the hunters, knowing the woman was a soft touch for scraps. But could she navigate the traps the hunters had set; would she survive her first Arctic winter?
Cold Coast is an incredible read by Aussie author Robyn Mundy, based on the true story of the first woman trapper on Svalbard – the story of Wanny Woldstad and Anders Sæterdal. Wanny herself wrote a memoir in the 1950s, touring the country to talk about her life as a trapper in the Arctic. Most poignant was the inclusion of the chapters on the young blue Arctic fox the hunters called Little Blue, the lives of the foxes and other Arctic animals. I was captivated by this beautifully written novel, totally absorbed by the rawness of Svalbard’s blizzards, glaciers and much more. Cold Coast is a book I can’t recommend highly enough.
With thanks to Ultimo Press for my ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.
December 14, 2021
*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com
‘People see her as a woman of small stature but out in nature she has always felt tall, made bigger and stronger by breathing in the mountains of home.’
Cold Coast is the latest fictional creation from Robyn Mundy, published by Ultimo Press. A story of bravery, passion and danger, Cold Coast is the arresting new novel from Tasmanian writer Robyn Mundy.
Cold Coast regales the life story of Wanny Woldstad, a grieving woman who makes the trek to Svalbard to join an elite group of all male Norwegian trappers. Wanny is a woman with guts and determination. Wanny is willing to go the distance to prove that she is up to the task of any man on the mission, even though she meets stiff opposition from her trapping partner. As the winter sets in and the trappers embark on their all-important work, Wanny encounters many threats to her life. From glaciers, to dangerous animals, Wanny must put her all into trapping the Arctic fox. Despite the prejudice, injustice and adversity Wanny faces, she knows she is a pioneer of her time. As Wanny sets out to prove her worth and more the gentle story of a young Arctic fox is gradually revealed. As these two stories intertwine, a tale of pure survival emerges from the icy depths of this stark location.
Robyn Mundy is the author of two previous novels set in remote locations of the globe. Cold Coast is another story inspired by the author’s passion for wild places, which she vividly brings to life on the pages of her latest novel.
Cold Coast is a beautifully written tale, that contains some situational and vivid prose. Scenery wise, this story is absolutely mind-blowing. I definitely felt a part of the white expanse and bitter cold region depicted in Mundy’s novel. I haven’t read many books at all set in the Arctic, so the chance to become part of this incredibly harsh environment was wonderful to experience. I was taken aback by the natural beauty, the many dangers and the musings of the various animals that populate this icy region of the world. Mundy does an excellent job of offsetting lead character Wanny’s tough and inspiring story with the life of a young Arctic fox. Mundy embodies the mindset of both human and animal extremely well. I loved the creative flair Mundy applied to fuse these two narratives together, it was a very clever device that worked fantastically on the pages of Cold Coast.
Mundy’s lead Wanny Woldstad, is a real-life figure who is resurrected in fictional form thanks to this ground-breaking novel. I really enjoyed the author’s note that preceded this book, it gave me an early feel for what I was about to encounter. Mundy’s novel is work of fiction but it has been informed by both archival and field research. In addition, Mundy has injected her many years of first-hand experience working as a seasonal based tour guide in the Svalbard, Greenland, Antarctica and Norwegian coastal areas to inform her novel. This direct experience shines through the novel at all points. Mundy works hard to provide context and full understanding to Cold Coast. I found the included glossary a very helpful tool to guide me through this often complex and volatile read.
Wanny’s story is one that needs to be told, especially in regards to female historical achievements. As an audience, we should be indebted to the work of Robyn Mundy for realising that this woman’s groundbreakingly journey needed to be fictionalised. Outstanding.
*Thanks is extended to Ultimo Press for providing a free copy of this book for review purposes.
Cold Coast is book #105 of the 2021 Australian Women Writers Challenge
‘People see her as a woman of small stature but out in nature she has always felt tall, made bigger and stronger by breathing in the mountains of home.’
Cold Coast is the latest fictional creation from Robyn Mundy, published by Ultimo Press. A story of bravery, passion and danger, Cold Coast is the arresting new novel from Tasmanian writer Robyn Mundy.
Cold Coast regales the life story of Wanny Woldstad, a grieving woman who makes the trek to Svalbard to join an elite group of all male Norwegian trappers. Wanny is a woman with guts and determination. Wanny is willing to go the distance to prove that she is up to the task of any man on the mission, even though she meets stiff opposition from her trapping partner. As the winter sets in and the trappers embark on their all-important work, Wanny encounters many threats to her life. From glaciers, to dangerous animals, Wanny must put her all into trapping the Arctic fox. Despite the prejudice, injustice and adversity Wanny faces, she knows she is a pioneer of her time. As Wanny sets out to prove her worth and more the gentle story of a young Arctic fox is gradually revealed. As these two stories intertwine, a tale of pure survival emerges from the icy depths of this stark location.
Robyn Mundy is the author of two previous novels set in remote locations of the globe. Cold Coast is another story inspired by the author’s passion for wild places, which she vividly brings to life on the pages of her latest novel.
Cold Coast is a beautifully written tale, that contains some situational and vivid prose. Scenery wise, this story is absolutely mind-blowing. I definitely felt a part of the white expanse and bitter cold region depicted in Mundy’s novel. I haven’t read many books at all set in the Arctic, so the chance to become part of this incredibly harsh environment was wonderful to experience. I was taken aback by the natural beauty, the many dangers and the musings of the various animals that populate this icy region of the world. Mundy does an excellent job of offsetting lead character Wanny’s tough and inspiring story with the life of a young Arctic fox. Mundy embodies the mindset of both human and animal extremely well. I loved the creative flair Mundy applied to fuse these two narratives together, it was a very clever device that worked fantastically on the pages of Cold Coast.
Mundy’s lead Wanny Woldstad, is a real-life figure who is resurrected in fictional form thanks to this ground-breaking novel. I really enjoyed the author’s note that preceded this book, it gave me an early feel for what I was about to encounter. Mundy’s novel is work of fiction but it has been informed by both archival and field research. In addition, Mundy has injected her many years of first-hand experience working as a seasonal based tour guide in the Svalbard, Greenland, Antarctica and Norwegian coastal areas to inform her novel. This direct experience shines through the novel at all points. Mundy works hard to provide context and full understanding to Cold Coast. I found the included glossary a very helpful tool to guide me through this often complex and volatile read.
Wanny’s story is one that needs to be told, especially in regards to female historical achievements. As an audience, we should be indebted to the work of Robyn Mundy for realising that this woman’s groundbreakingly journey needed to be fictionalised. Outstanding.
*Thanks is extended to Ultimo Press for providing a free copy of this book for review purposes.
Cold Coast is book #105 of the 2021 Australian Women Writers Challenge
November 19, 2022
4.5 stars. I was surprised how much I enjoyed this book despite it being about trapping. Mundy has done an excellent job of walking the difficult line. In this modern age there would be little sympathy (I imagine) or taste for this type of work and I certainly don’t want to just read about animals being slaughtered for skins but she ha managed to bring dignity to this life. Her ability to retain a historical perspective and focus on the beauty and magnificence of the environment and its natural inhabitants makes this story sing. I have never been anywhere like this yet I could vividly imagine the perils, crevasses, blizzards and the absolute isolation.
“This land shows no care for a person who forgets that their hold here is conditional.”
“This land shows no care for a person who forgets that their hold here is conditional.”
December 8, 2021
As beautiful as it is brutal, Cold Coast is a magnificently wrought representation of life in the Arctic and the work of a fur trapper in the 1930s. The starkness and danger of the Arctic is brought to life, not just through the experiences of the trappers, but also through the darting and hunting of a little blue fox, who we meet as a kit, the runt of her litter, yet by far the most determined to survive. Each chapter of this novel alternates between the trappers and Little Blue, offering the reader a multifaceted story of Arctic survival and unlimited courage. A thought-provoking portrayal of female agency in the 1930s and a quietly unfolding love story, there is so much to Cold Coast, far more than I initially expected. Highly recommended.
Thanks to the publisher for the review copy.
Thanks to the publisher for the review copy.
October 11, 2023
‘Only two things are certainties: the long polar night and the long polar day.’
Svalbard, Norway, 1932. Wanny Wolstad, a young widow, want to enter the exclusively male world of the Norwegian trappers. While Anders Sæterdal reluctantly accepts her as a partner, he does not believe that she will be fit for the work involved. And so, we enter the cold, dark world of the Arctic winter. Wanny and Sæterdal are accompanied by three dogs. While Sæterdal’s dogs are accustomed to pulling sleds, Wanny’s dog must learn.
‘A trapper’s life cannot dwell on what ifs we learn what we can from each encounter to keep ourselves alive.’
After preparing for the winter, Wanny and Sæterdal confront the harsh Arctic weather as they set out to trap Arctic foxes. But weather is only one of the dangers they face. In addition to blizzards, glaciers, and dangerous sea ice, the pair also encounter polar bears. Over the course of the novel, we learn of the sacrifices Wanny has made to pursue her dream to be a trapper while she and Sæterdal become an effective team.
Alongside the work of the trappers with their claustrophobic living conditions, we also have the story of a young blue Arctic fox. This fox, the runt of the litter, is watchful of the hunters. The woman occasionally feeds her scraps. The fox needs to be vigilant, as well as an effective hunter, if she is to survive her first winter.
‘This land shows no care for a person who forgets that their hold here is conditional. Who would we be without a rifle in our hand? How long would we last out in the open?’
Ms Mundy has based her novel on a real person: Wanny Wolstad (1893 – 1959) was the first female trapper on Svalbard. I found this novel totally absorbing, from its portrayal of the harsh and dangerous but beautiful landscape, through its depiction of the issues Wanny and Sæterdal faced both as a team and as individuals.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Svalbard, Norway, 1932. Wanny Wolstad, a young widow, want to enter the exclusively male world of the Norwegian trappers. While Anders Sæterdal reluctantly accepts her as a partner, he does not believe that she will be fit for the work involved. And so, we enter the cold, dark world of the Arctic winter. Wanny and Sæterdal are accompanied by three dogs. While Sæterdal’s dogs are accustomed to pulling sleds, Wanny’s dog must learn.
‘A trapper’s life cannot dwell on what ifs we learn what we can from each encounter to keep ourselves alive.’
After preparing for the winter, Wanny and Sæterdal confront the harsh Arctic weather as they set out to trap Arctic foxes. But weather is only one of the dangers they face. In addition to blizzards, glaciers, and dangerous sea ice, the pair also encounter polar bears. Over the course of the novel, we learn of the sacrifices Wanny has made to pursue her dream to be a trapper while she and Sæterdal become an effective team.
Alongside the work of the trappers with their claustrophobic living conditions, we also have the story of a young blue Arctic fox. This fox, the runt of the litter, is watchful of the hunters. The woman occasionally feeds her scraps. The fox needs to be vigilant, as well as an effective hunter, if she is to survive her first winter.
‘This land shows no care for a person who forgets that their hold here is conditional. Who would we be without a rifle in our hand? How long would we last out in the open?’
Ms Mundy has based her novel on a real person: Wanny Wolstad (1893 – 1959) was the first female trapper on Svalbard. I found this novel totally absorbing, from its portrayal of the harsh and dangerous but beautiful landscape, through its depiction of the issues Wanny and Sæterdal faced both as a team and as individuals.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
August 30, 2022
What an incredible book.
Two words: Stark and endearing.
Through incredible storytelling, you feel every emotion, every heartstopping moment, and (with tears at the end), just how incredible this woman’s life was. Thank you @RobynMundy for another incredible story.
Two words: Stark and endearing.
Through incredible storytelling, you feel every emotion, every heartstopping moment, and (with tears at the end), just how incredible this woman’s life was. Thank you @RobynMundy for another incredible story.
December 24, 2021
This is a great story, well-told. Mundy has done a terrific job of rendering the small artic archipelago of Svalbard in the 1930s and reimagining the debut season of its first female trapper. She clearly evokes how beautiful and desolate, but also how dangerous, this environment would have been and the harsh life of an artic trapper. Mundy had a difficult challenge in making the central character, Wanny, likeable (working against the author here are a modern distaste for the fur trade and the seeming selfishness of a parent leaving behind two children—albeit teenagers—to pursue her dreams) but she nevertheless inhabits and humanises Wanny to the extent that she (the character) resembles both an accurate product of her era and also a pioneer of female emancipation. Mundy also did a great job in creating and sustaining the central relationship between Wanny and Anders—the dialogue exchanges were lovely and you could feel the tension of their relationship, largely confined as they were to a space barely big enough for a polar bear. As a personal taste, and with some notable exceptions, I don’t enjoy reading passages from an animal’s perspective; but I can recognise when it’s being done well, and Mundy never strays into sentimentality when she inhabits the animals that interact with our heroes. The ending is pretty spectacular, too—struck an excellent final note. All in all, this is a great read, displaying detail and passion that betrays extensive research and (in Mundy’s case) a personal affinity with Svalbard; one might even stretch this authorial affinity to include Wanny herself—while occupying different eras, it feels like author and subject might have been cut from the same cloth.
December 10, 2021
This story imagines what life was like for Svalbard's first female trapper, Wanny Wolstad. Over the long Arctic winter of 1932, Wanny must navigate gender prejudices as well as the harsh and dangerous conditions alongside her reluctant male trapping partner, Anders Saeterdal. Robyn Mundy captures the landscape of the high Arctic with the same eye and passion as the late, great Barry Lopez, but in her rendition readers are also given a remarkable story of female courage and determination in a place and time where everything seemed stacked against Wanny.
April 3, 2023
Exquisitely written and gripping story. Visceral depiction of the arctic trapping life in the 1950s for its main characters who are interesting and complex personalities. Balanced by details of life of the animals. Heart warming story that shows compassion for humans and animals alike and steers well away from cliches and sentimentality. Couldn’t put it down and read slowly to savour the beautiful language. Highly recommended.
May 21, 2023
Mundy does a great job of reconstructing the tale of Wanny Woldstad, the first female fur trapper/ bear hunter in the Artic wilds of Svalbard. The challenge for the reader is the monotony of days of repetition once Winter falls. Given their limited internal dialogues, there is only so much relief in the alternating chapters told from the perspective of an Arctic Fox and a Polar Bear.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2
December 5, 2023
Really beautiful writing, the three protagonists were very likeable. The descriptions of how the awesomeness of the landscape affected Wanny rang true. I do tend to agree with the French girl who criticised their reasons for being there though at the end of the book, I know most of us are neoliberal slaves to the capitalist machine and we have to work to earn our keep, sometimes having to trade our morals for money, but it just seems so particularly brutal to kill arctic foxes and polar bears - especially with the author giving these animals anthropomorphic/human like emotions and thought processes, and especially with the current day heartbreaking footage of skinny bears drowning because the ice is melting and there is nothing for them to eat. I wish the characters lived in a later era when they were just there living in Svalbard to be nature photographers or survivor reality show contestants.
February 9, 2023
I loved this book even though it made me sad. The quality of the prose and descriptions of cold, dark, glimmerings of light, the ice, the snow and the flora and fauna are beautifully and finely realised. The story treads as delicately as an arctic fox through the narrative drawing a realistic picture, I imagine, of the brutality of life as a trapper in the arctic in 1933. The very real struggle by the trappers to survive is mirrored by that of the the animals and birds that surround them. And the author manages to so involve us in the every day life of the two trappers that we understand why and how they did what they had to do to the very animals we come to love. We condemn but we also somehow understand that these were different times.
A worthy book, one that should be read and discussed.
A worthy book, one that should be read and discussed.
February 2, 2023
Such a beautiful and engaging book. I was completely captivated by the landscape, the animals and the human characters. I loved the chapters woven into the story from the animals perspectives. A story filled with wonderful adventures, deep character connections and poetic descriptions of environment. Best book I’ve read this year!
February 6, 2022
Well written and historically intriguing, I enjoyed this book a lot more than I had expected. I liked Wanny's character and I loved Little Blue. Robyn Mundy never fails to deliver with her books.
February 12, 2023
What it took for this woman to achieve her dream! It was an amazing achievement, battling nature, storms, prejudice, polar bears, her own feelings of guilt. For the times, it was equally amazing that Anders even took her along. How their partnership ebbed and flowed was the highlight of the story. Nature provided the rest - the lives of the animals the hunters were pitted against, the change of seasons with their deadly beauty and wonder, an existence that most people would never imagine trying. All in all, a very interesting book, Rey well written.
November 23, 2022
3.5 stars.
I did like this book. I liked how the author alternated between telling the story from the view of Anders and Wanny, and then from nature (the foxes & cubs). I just found that the story didn’t portray how difficult it would have been for Wanny to have been accepted as a trapper in the 1930s. It all seemed very easy & that Anders almost immediately accepted her, rather than a male compatriot.
I think maybe part of why I didn’t love it, is because one of my favourite books is Under A Pole Star by Stef Penney, which is a rather big book which goes into much more detail about becoming a female explorer. Maybe if I didn’t have that comparison, I would have liked Cold Coast more.
I’m not saying I didn’t like it though, it’s still worth a read. Mundy’s writing style is easygoing & there’s a glossary to help with the language. Overall, an enjoyable read, I just felt it needed to be more.
I did like this book. I liked how the author alternated between telling the story from the view of Anders and Wanny, and then from nature (the foxes & cubs). I just found that the story didn’t portray how difficult it would have been for Wanny to have been accepted as a trapper in the 1930s. It all seemed very easy & that Anders almost immediately accepted her, rather than a male compatriot.
I think maybe part of why I didn’t love it, is because one of my favourite books is Under A Pole Star by Stef Penney, which is a rather big book which goes into much more detail about becoming a female explorer. Maybe if I didn’t have that comparison, I would have liked Cold Coast more.
I’m not saying I didn’t like it though, it’s still worth a read. Mundy’s writing style is easygoing & there’s a glossary to help with the language. Overall, an enjoyable read, I just felt it needed to be more.
April 18, 2022
Apparently a fictional narrative based on the life of Wanny Wolstad, one of the earlier if not the earliest female Arctice trapper. I loved that I couldn't tell if this was a fictional retelling, or based off notes from Ms.Wolstad. The author's love of the Arctic's harsh beauty is evident in her story, and she captures the social navigation between Ms.Wolstad and her male companion quite well. The subplot following the blue runt fox is less compelling, but I still felt sad when the little blue fox fell to the trappers.
November 26, 2023
I was surprised how much I enjoyed this read. I went into it expecting to hate it (i would never have picked it up myself - animals and icy wilderness are not topics I'm overly enthusiastic about) but it was this months book club book.
It turns out the writing was stark, lyrical and moved along without getting bogged down in too much detail. The landscape felt vivid and I admired Wannys determination. 4.5 rounded up.
It turns out the writing was stark, lyrical and moved along without getting bogged down in too much detail. The landscape felt vivid and I admired Wannys determination. 4.5 rounded up.
December 6, 2021
Just last week I was toying with the idea of joining Marina Sofia in her December reading project 'Russians in the Snow' because I thought that settings in snowy wastes would be consoling in the extreme heat of an Australian summer. Little did I know that within a day or two I would be reading a book that sent a chill down my spine, and not just because it's set in the polar region of Norway!
Mundy is brilliant at capturing the sensory immediacy of her characters' environment. She knows it well from her own experience in wild places. Her first novel The Nature of Ice was set in Antarctica where she has wintered and summered; and she has worked seasonally in Svalbard, Greenland, Antarctica, the Norwegian Coast and wild Scotland as a ship-based tour guide. This is the moment when it is too late for Wanny to change her mind:
Summer is making a belated start here in Victoria, so it was comforting to read this novel under the warmth of the doona, but Cold Coast is not a book to read at bedtime because the narrative tension is constant. It is not just foxes that break into the hut in search of food, bears do it too, and neither Sæterdal nor Wanny can relax their scrutiny of the landscape for long. Every venture means risk, and there are heart-stopping moments when survival is touch and go, not least because they can rarely trust the ice beneath their feet.
Mundy does not shirk the confronting issue of hunting and trapping in this fragile environment. Indeed, this novel is a powerful argument for why such places should be protected.
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2021/12/07/c...
Mundy is brilliant at capturing the sensory immediacy of her characters' environment. She knows it well from her own experience in wild places. Her first novel The Nature of Ice was set in Antarctica where she has wintered and summered; and she has worked seasonally in Svalbard, Greenland, Antarctica, the Norwegian Coast and wild Scotland as a ship-based tour guide. This is the moment when it is too late for Wanny to change her mind:
The clanging of the anchor chain reverberates across the water to the shoreline where she stands beside Sæterdal. Sjefen, Chief, the men call him. They watch as the boat swings out, three warbling blasts to signal farewell. A year before they will see another ship. A year away from those she holds most dear. She draws herself firm, raises her arm, imagining how, from out there, she and he are two stick figures, barely human, marooned in frozen vastness.
When the ship motors from view, too late to change her mind, a man's voice comes to her as sharply as the wind that shimmies down the mountain and knocks a fist between her shoulder blades. (p.29)
Summer is making a belated start here in Victoria, so it was comforting to read this novel under the warmth of the doona, but Cold Coast is not a book to read at bedtime because the narrative tension is constant. It is not just foxes that break into the hut in search of food, bears do it too, and neither Sæterdal nor Wanny can relax their scrutiny of the landscape for long. Every venture means risk, and there are heart-stopping moments when survival is touch and go, not least because they can rarely trust the ice beneath their feet.
Their New year trip to Fuglefjell has been delayed thanks to a second inscrutable week of heavy snow, then showers of rain, then freeze and hail, the only constant a fierceness of wind which jams new rafts of ice and logs of driftwood up along the shoreline. Out in the fjord, bergs locked in the sea split and topple, issuing a booming thunder and opening up the ice until the gash refreezes. When snowdrift eases enough to see out the back door, to make headway on skis beyond the Signal, they slip and slither on patches of black ice. Their dogs slide on their haunches in a knot of harnesses, the sledge toppling when it hits the snow. Wanny loses count of the trigger locks she pulls apart, the wooden pieces doused with rain then frozen in place, all along the trap line. She struggles physically and mentally at the thought of twenty traps — the kilograms of stone to be offloaded, each trap cleared of snow before it can be rebaited, the aching effort of gingerly reloading thirty, forty kilograms of stone back onto a frame... (p.147)
Mundy does not shirk the confronting issue of hunting and trapping in this fragile environment. Indeed, this novel is a powerful argument for why such places should be protected.
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2021/12/07/c...
December 9, 2021
One of the many joys of reading is traveling to other places and times. I guarantee that when you open up Cold Coast it will take you on a new and fascinating journey to a part of the world you’ve probably never experienced.
Set on a Norwegian archipelago, Svalbard, in the 1930s, Cold Coast is the story of Wanny Woldstad and her first expedition. Woldstad was Svalbard’s first female trapper and together with her trapping partner, she faced freezing temperatures, an unforgiving environment, long and treacherous hikes and the threat of polar bears while hunting in the region.
Many of my favourite historical fiction reads draw inspiration from real life people and Cold Coast absolutely had me looking up more about Woldstad’s fascinating life.
I love a book with a strong female lead and this book delivered. What a brave and determined woman Wanny Woldstad was!
I was so appreciative of the research the author obviously put in when writing this book. It made this a really immersive read, filled with everyday detail on life in the Arctic.
Some chapters within Cold Coast are written from the perspective of animals on the archipelago, but while fascinating, I was so interested in Woldstad’s story I was often impatient to get back to her chapters.
This book will absolutely appeal to many readers but I’ll note a content warning for my friends who will not enjoy reading about hunting animals.
Historical fiction fans will especially enjoy this book. Pick it up and be transported.
A big thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy of this book.
Set on a Norwegian archipelago, Svalbard, in the 1930s, Cold Coast is the story of Wanny Woldstad and her first expedition. Woldstad was Svalbard’s first female trapper and together with her trapping partner, she faced freezing temperatures, an unforgiving environment, long and treacherous hikes and the threat of polar bears while hunting in the region.
Many of my favourite historical fiction reads draw inspiration from real life people and Cold Coast absolutely had me looking up more about Woldstad’s fascinating life.
I love a book with a strong female lead and this book delivered. What a brave and determined woman Wanny Woldstad was!
I was so appreciative of the research the author obviously put in when writing this book. It made this a really immersive read, filled with everyday detail on life in the Arctic.
Some chapters within Cold Coast are written from the perspective of animals on the archipelago, but while fascinating, I was so interested in Woldstad’s story I was often impatient to get back to her chapters.
This book will absolutely appeal to many readers but I’ll note a content warning for my friends who will not enjoy reading about hunting animals.
Historical fiction fans will especially enjoy this book. Pick it up and be transported.
A big thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy of this book.
September 13, 2021
I was very fortunate to get an advance reading copy of this novel and I really enjoyed it. This book is set in the High Arctic and as I have visited this pristine environment a number of times I was keen to see how it was depicted. I wasn’t disappointed and felt I was right back in this beautiful and remote environment. This book is written beautifully and is set in the 1930’s depicting one winter season of the first female trapper. A time when trapping animals was common. Despite the beautiful writing it was tough to read descriptions of the beautiful, majestic and rare animals of the High Arctic being caught in this practice. I don’t regret reading this book,but be prepared for reading about an amazing woman taking on a man’s job in an incredibly tough environment and the practice of trapping animals no longer allowed.
December 31, 2021
Totally loved this novel. May not be able to travel but was transported nonetheless to those bleak and beautiful ice and snow-scapes of the Svalbard in the 1930s.
Great protagonist, Wanny Woldstad, will take on The arctic, blizzards, polar bears and try to prove herself the equal of the male trappers and most particularly Anders who had been reckless enough to take her on as a partner.
The descriptions of the landscape, the meticulous chronicling of a silver Fox’s challenge to survive and the development of the bond between this pair of trappers makes for an astonishingly atmospheric and thrilling read.
Great protagonist, Wanny Woldstad, will take on The arctic, blizzards, polar bears and try to prove herself the equal of the male trappers and most particularly Anders who had been reckless enough to take her on as a partner.
The descriptions of the landscape, the meticulous chronicling of a silver Fox’s challenge to survive and the development of the bond between this pair of trappers makes for an astonishingly atmospheric and thrilling read.
March 14, 2022
Based on the true story of a woman who became the first female to work as a trapper in the remote northern regions of Norway in the late 1800s, this book beautifully evokes the climate, landscape, wildlife, dangers and hardships of the region. I came away with intense admiration for the people who endured these incredibly harsh conditions to hunt foxes and polar bears for their fur and also for the courage, skill and determination of the woman who overcame all obstacles to realise her dream of taking part in this work. While it was an evocative read, it was also quite slow and repetitive, and would not suit those who enjoy a fast-paced story.
August 17, 2021
This book has left an indelible mark on me, and I’m constantly reflecting on what this book has brought to me. I thought reading a fictional take on what actually happened - the story of the first female trapper in the Arctic world, would be like watching paint dry - how wrong I was!
Initially, your confronted with the intensity and isolation of trapping. But the author brings a warmth that permeates this world, and indeed you, the reader.
The story is certainly different, but you are better for it, so take the journey.
Initially, your confronted with the intensity and isolation of trapping. But the author brings a warmth that permeates this world, and indeed you, the reader.
The story is certainly different, but you are better for it, so take the journey.
March 21, 2024
In an interview about this book, the adventurous author said: “I first travelled to the archipelago of Svalbard (above Norway) in 2001 and have returned almost every year since. A favourite site I like to visit is Hornsund, in the south-west corner of Spitsbergen, Svalbard’s largest island. At the far end of Hornsund’s fjord sits a pint-sized trapper’s cabin at the foot of a mountain alive with the cries and shrieks of breeding seabirds. When I learned that the cabin was used by Wanny Woldstad (pronounced Vanny Voldstad) in the early 1930s, and that she was Svalbard’s first female trapper and hunter, I wanted to know more. How did a woman—a young widow—break into this fiercely guarded male domain? What was the experience of four months of Arctic winter darkness in bitterly cold conditions? Those questions set me on a course that led to the writing of Cold Coast.”
The novel is set in 1932 when the main character, 39 year old Wanny, approaches a fur trapper named Anders with a proposition – he needs a partner for the winter season up north, and she is really good with a gun. And she is seeking adventure and the space of Svalbard, a mountainous region of ice and rock, roughly the size of Tasmania. The region is very close to the top of the world – quite a long way from Norway and very isolated and cold! Its worth looking on a map to see where it is!
Anders and Wanny fall into a daily rhythm, preparing for the long night of winter, when the trapping of polar foxes and bears truly begins. Mundy does a good job of describing how their relationship ebbs and flows and the types of tensions and pleasures that can come from being in close company for a long time with one person only.
In alternating chapters, we follow the activities of a little arctic fox – the runt of her litter with a rare coat of blue fur. The little fox, like Wanny, is on a steep learning curve and is adjusting to a fairly hostile environment as the mother and father fox kick the little fox and her siblings out of the den. They are both vulnerable and liable to be underestimated by others. This narrative breaks up the human story and reminds us that the location rightly belongs to wild things (even though they are in constant danger of being trapped). Of this, Mundy says: “I hesitate to say that a reader may need to brace him or herself. A story that involves trapping and hunting has its inevitable moments of…well, killing, a subject that posed the greatest moral dilemma: I was determined to be true to a 1930s mindset toward taking Arctic foxes and polar bears at a time when their pelts were commercially valued, knowing that a contemporary readership would likely find those values repugnant.” (https://thehobartmagazine.com.au/hoba...)
What Mundy does best is to evoke the environment. This is no surprise as she has lived and worked in places like Svalbard for a very long time. One reviewer comments: “Her evocations of this awe-inspiring landscape and its harsh conditions are so real, you truly feel like you’ve stepped through a wardrobe into a world turned blue by the polar winter.” (https://www.readings.com.au/reviews/c...) And another comment: “She knows the landscape intimately – wind that “scours the glacier clean of its covering, early morning light an undulating sea, milky blue, the mountain is a chorus, fulmars wheeling in the breeze”.” (https://www.smh.com.au/culture/books/...)
It took me a while to get into the novel but am glad that I persevered. There is considerable restraint in the way that she describes the interactions between Wanny and Anders and I would have liked more about their relationship. For example, I wondered just how nervous each person would be about being cooped up with a person of the opposite sex but neither really voices what I imagine must have been quite a tension at the beginning. Though she does describe things like menstruation and the challenges of going to the toilet (outside) in such a cold place.
A reviewer notes that before Woldstad, only men had traversed these lands. “This presiding world of men. All this space …” Space relegated by society’s self-sanctioned male dominion – Woldstad knows her gender does not make things easy for her desires, but that doesn’t stop her from pursuing her dreams. “The land commands its own reverence. She feels the power in its harshness. It’s unforgiving strength.”
This is the power of books – that they can take you to places like Svalbard and to other times. I really enjoyed this novel once I got into it.
I’ll leave the final comment to Mundy who was asked: “There are parallels between the wildness and isolation of Svalbard and Tasmania (and even Maatsuyker Island where your previous novel was set). What is compelling about these landscapes and lives for you?” Mundy said: “ My novels to date have been forged by nature and wilderness, to the point that nature functions as a fickle, unforgiving character. I seem to favour placing human characters within such settings who are not altogether comfortable with their surrounds but who, in time, are transformed by the experience. It seems inevitable that part of each novel reflects my personal experiences in wild places: mighty surrounds command a sense of awe.” (https://thehobartmagazine.com.au/hoba...)
The novel is set in 1932 when the main character, 39 year old Wanny, approaches a fur trapper named Anders with a proposition – he needs a partner for the winter season up north, and she is really good with a gun. And she is seeking adventure and the space of Svalbard, a mountainous region of ice and rock, roughly the size of Tasmania. The region is very close to the top of the world – quite a long way from Norway and very isolated and cold! Its worth looking on a map to see where it is!
Anders and Wanny fall into a daily rhythm, preparing for the long night of winter, when the trapping of polar foxes and bears truly begins. Mundy does a good job of describing how their relationship ebbs and flows and the types of tensions and pleasures that can come from being in close company for a long time with one person only.
In alternating chapters, we follow the activities of a little arctic fox – the runt of her litter with a rare coat of blue fur. The little fox, like Wanny, is on a steep learning curve and is adjusting to a fairly hostile environment as the mother and father fox kick the little fox and her siblings out of the den. They are both vulnerable and liable to be underestimated by others. This narrative breaks up the human story and reminds us that the location rightly belongs to wild things (even though they are in constant danger of being trapped). Of this, Mundy says: “I hesitate to say that a reader may need to brace him or herself. A story that involves trapping and hunting has its inevitable moments of…well, killing, a subject that posed the greatest moral dilemma: I was determined to be true to a 1930s mindset toward taking Arctic foxes and polar bears at a time when their pelts were commercially valued, knowing that a contemporary readership would likely find those values repugnant.” (https://thehobartmagazine.com.au/hoba...)
What Mundy does best is to evoke the environment. This is no surprise as she has lived and worked in places like Svalbard for a very long time. One reviewer comments: “Her evocations of this awe-inspiring landscape and its harsh conditions are so real, you truly feel like you’ve stepped through a wardrobe into a world turned blue by the polar winter.” (https://www.readings.com.au/reviews/c...) And another comment: “She knows the landscape intimately – wind that “scours the glacier clean of its covering, early morning light an undulating sea, milky blue, the mountain is a chorus, fulmars wheeling in the breeze”.” (https://www.smh.com.au/culture/books/...)
It took me a while to get into the novel but am glad that I persevered. There is considerable restraint in the way that she describes the interactions between Wanny and Anders and I would have liked more about their relationship. For example, I wondered just how nervous each person would be about being cooped up with a person of the opposite sex but neither really voices what I imagine must have been quite a tension at the beginning. Though she does describe things like menstruation and the challenges of going to the toilet (outside) in such a cold place.
A reviewer notes that before Woldstad, only men had traversed these lands. “This presiding world of men. All this space …” Space relegated by society’s self-sanctioned male dominion – Woldstad knows her gender does not make things easy for her desires, but that doesn’t stop her from pursuing her dreams. “The land commands its own reverence. She feels the power in its harshness. It’s unforgiving strength.”
This is the power of books – that they can take you to places like Svalbard and to other times. I really enjoyed this novel once I got into it.
I’ll leave the final comment to Mundy who was asked: “There are parallels between the wildness and isolation of Svalbard and Tasmania (and even Maatsuyker Island where your previous novel was set). What is compelling about these landscapes and lives for you?” Mundy said: “ My novels to date have been forged by nature and wilderness, to the point that nature functions as a fickle, unforgiving character. I seem to favour placing human characters within such settings who are not altogether comfortable with their surrounds but who, in time, are transformed by the experience. It seems inevitable that part of each novel reflects my personal experiences in wild places: mighty surrounds command a sense of awe.” (https://thehobartmagazine.com.au/hoba...)
January 5, 2023
Really enjoyed this book, I now can think of this geographical area in a much more detailed and precise way.
I liked also the short chapters interlinking between the two hunters and the fox
I liked also the short chapters interlinking between the two hunters and the fox
February 7, 2022
Wonderfully researched work of fiction re-imagining the experiences of Wanny Wolstad, an extraordinary woman who broke the shackles of what it was to be a young widow with children in a man’s world - the high Arctic of Norway in the early 1930s. Already an accomplished businesswoman in the frontier town of Tromsø, Wanny yearned to venture into the wilds to become a trapper. Scoffed at, she cajoled seasoned trapper Anders Saeterdal into reluctantly taking her on. She thus became remote Spitzbergen’s first female trapper and hunter. This book relates in vivid detail the harshness of life for those who chose and loved this life as they spent the year of 1932-33 overwintering in such a bleak but breathtaking landscape. The struggle for survival, the prickly relationship between the pair, the extreme cold and the treacherous location are all brilliantly described. Interwoven between the fascinating human tale are the beautifully written chapters told from the point of view of the magnificent creatures who inhabit this inhospitable land.
May 12, 2022
Cold Coast is a gritty and engaging story set in 1932 in a Svalbard winter. Based on the life of Svalbard’s first female trapper, Wanny Woldstad and her gritty determination to succeed in a patriarchal viewed world. Robyn Mundy’s writing is as clear and precise as the pristine Norwegian wilderness she writes about. She really bought to life the harsh living conditions in that time and place for humans and the hunting way of life. This is a world of trapping, killing and skinning animals – a very real account of how it felt, smelt and looked, but it was real and that is what happened. I was barracking for Liten Blå (Little Blue), an Arctic fox with a blue coat throughout the entire novel. Thank you for the glossary of Norwegian words in the back of the book.
My daughter lives in Norway, so for me the story gave me a personal connection to place. It was cooling to be reading the story in a hot, Australian summer and to be able to step into the icy cold Arctic region in my mind.
My daughter lives in Norway, so for me the story gave me a personal connection to place. It was cooling to be reading the story in a hot, Australian summer and to be able to step into the icy cold Arctic region in my mind.
July 20, 2022
This is the true story of Wanny Woldstod, the first female trapper in Norway in the Svalbard area. She has to prove to her partner Anders Saeterdal that as a woman she is fit to the task. They confront the harshness of the climate, 4 months of total darkness, polar bears and endless journeys across ice, tundra and snow to trap for pelts and food. The relationship between Wanny and Anders is narrated so well, developing a relationship of great strength. Wanny was a woman ahead of her time - wanting her independence as a woman. She was extremely brave, resilient and hard working.
Alongside their story is the blue Arctic fox who was the runt of the litter and who must eke out a living for herself. The author has so well managed the narrative within the life of a trapper in the 30’s to allow for the contemporary reader to be able to read it and understand the culture of trapping and hunting.
Well done Robyn Mundy.
Alongside their story is the blue Arctic fox who was the runt of the litter and who must eke out a living for herself. The author has so well managed the narrative within the life of a trapper in the 30’s to allow for the contemporary reader to be able to read it and understand the culture of trapping and hunting.
Well done Robyn Mundy.
May 28, 2022
Set in 1932, Cold Coast was inspired by the story of Svalbard’s first female trapper, Wanny Woldstad. Wanny and her trapping partner, Anders Sæterdal, spent almost a year in complete isolation on Spitsbergen, a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, trapping polar bears, foxes and seals. Whilst this was a confronting read at times, I absolutely fell in love with the beautiful, evocative writing and the spectacular descriptions of the wilderness. I was completely immersed in the lives of the trappers, and the animals who inhabit the arctic, as they fought to survive through the brutal Arctic winter. The chapters told from the point of view of the arctic animals—particularly Little Blue—were some of my favourites, they were so masterfully done.
This feminist tale of courage and survival is one to savour. I highly recommend it, it gets all the stars from me!
Disclaimer: I received a free coy of this book from Ultimo Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This feminist tale of courage and survival is one to savour. I highly recommend it, it gets all the stars from me!
Disclaimer: I received a free coy of this book from Ultimo Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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