Sled Dog Trails

by Mary Shields

Near fine in glossy illustrated wrappers. SIGNED first edition - First printing, a trade paperback original. A book which is essentially the diary of a young woman who went to Alaska in 1965 and fell in love with the wilderness. In 1974 with a black part-Labrador lead dog named Cabbage, she became the first woman to complete the 1,049-mile Iditarod sled dog race. SIGNED by author on half-title page. Illustrated by Nancy Van Veenen. xii, 127 pp.

Genres: Memoir

127 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1984

About the author

Mary Shields is a pioneer in women's dogsledding as the first woman to complete the Iditarod, a 1,000-mile historic dog sled race between Anchorage and Nome Alaska in 1974.
As a college student from Wisconsin, Shields visited Alaska while working for Campfire Girls and fell in love with it. She moved to Alaska in 1965. Shields worked as a waitress and used the food scraps from her job to feed her dogs. Shields lived mostly alone though sometimes she would stay with her racing competitor, Lolly Medley, who finished the Iditarod shortly after she did in 1974. Shields didn't have children and was never married. During the 1974 race Shields said that at checkpoints men were betting when she would drop out and women were betting that she would finish. Hearing this just gave her motivation to be the first woman to finish. It took Shields 29 days to finish the race. She placed 23rd in the race. Ever since Shields competed, more and more women became inspired to take on this exhausting race. She wanted to prove that gender didn't matter.
Shields was often present at the start of the Iditarod races and gave speeches about her journey. She operates a kennel and gives tours of her home and kennel. Mary achieved the Women Who Dared Gratitude Award for daring to take on the Iditarod. Shields has written five books, including Small Wonders: Year-Round Alaska and The Alaskan Happy Dog Trilogy.

Reviews

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mary sounds like an amazing individual and I hope to meet her next month in Fairbanks. I was disappointed that there was no detail about her Iditarod run. She didn't describe much about it. Her journal stories (about other routes she and her partner John took) were really fascinating. They sometimes stayed out in the bush more than 30 days.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am interested in the Iditarod and my family does a yearly competition choosing mushers and following the race. One of my library friends met Mary Shields (the first woman to complete the Iditarod in 1974) and has a signed copy of this book which she generously lent to me. This is not just about the Iditarod but about her experiences living in Alaska and mushing to her summer jobs that supported her mushing lifestyle. I found it interesting.

[Brianna Bowman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a friend who works as a park ranger in Denali National Park. The Denali rangers use dog sleds to get around the park during the winter, and I knew she would be a great source of some dog-sledding book recommendations. Mary Shields was her first recommendation - Shields is in within my friends' real social network, having officiated a friends' wedding up in Fairbanks. Her reputation as being incredibly friendly, lighthearted, and just all around badass, proceeds her. I hope one day I can meet this awesome woman!
I am comparing this review to my recent review of Walden by Thoreau, where one of my criticisms was that Thoreau seemed quick to judge for someone who really only lived 'off the land' for a couple of years. Shields doesn't waste any time thinking about other peoples' decisions to live in the lower 48, or even Anchorage - she's too busy just admiring the beauty that surrounds her in the Alaskan bush. Shields strikes me as the type of person that doesn't have an unkind thing to say about anyone or anything. She just loves dogsledding, so much so that when she finished the Iditarod (the first woman to do it, coming in 22nd place), she said, "That was so much fun, I think I'll just dog sled all the way back!" Perhaps this is typical of dogsledders, but I think it does demonstrate Shields' passion and love for being outside as much as she possibly can. She is so incredibly comfortable in the outdoors, it is something to admire. The writing is simplistic in nature, mostly a recounting of events, but there is the magic of a storyteller in Shields as well.
Something that I have been drawn to by some female authors is a matter-of-fact approach to their story, I think represented well in Linda Greenlaw's "The Hungry Ocean", which is something along the lines of: "If I stopped to think about whether it would be hard to do what I do because I'm a woman, then I probably wouldn't have gotten as far as I have." There's something to be said about a woman who just does what she loves to do, without so much as a second thought as to what others, especially men, might think. Greenlaw made this passing comment, Shields never so much as mentioned any difficulty relating to her femininity. 1000s of miles spent in the interior of Alaska? No problem, as it should be! She's definitely added to my list of role models.
As for the introduction to the Alaskan way of life, the overall sense of the book brings to life the reasons I have fallen in love with Alaska. It's a small town in a huge, wild country.

[Kathy Kenney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very simple, straight forward book about her Alaska dogsledding ventures. She seems like an easy going, humble person that just wants to enjoy the outdoors and pleasures of life. If you like outdoor adventure, you'd like this quick read.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guess what’s on my list of adventurous things to do?

[Ctippie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book made me want to live in Alaska.