Dreaming Bears: A Gwich'in Indian Storyteller, a Southern Doctor, a Wild Corner of Alaska

This is a book about an adventurous traveler, an Athabaskan Indian village in the Brooks Mountains of Alaska, and a remarkable resident of that village.In the early 60s, Mike Holloway and his compatriots drove up to Alaska with plans to explore the wilderness of interior Alaska. By chance someone recommended that they depart from Venetie, a small remoteAthabaskan village about 50 miles from the nearest road. Among the villages they encountered was Johnny Frank, whose Christian name gives no hint of his remarkable life.Johnny was probably born in the late 1870s, and spent most of his life with his extended family as subsistence hunters following the herds of caribou. He did not encounter his first white man until he was in his twenties. Even when he "settled" in the Village of Venetie, he spent most of the year in the woods, hunting and trapping. Johnny, who not only learned to speak English, he learned to read and write it. He was a talented raconteur and what stories he had to tell. He remembers the gold rush at the end of the 19th century and also has amazing recall of his experiences as a medicine man.Mike frequently visited Johnny at his "gold camp" and also visited Venetie for the five decades. The description of village life captures the remarkable changes from the 1960s, when the village had no electricity and relied on sled dogs, to recent years where the Internet has altered village life forever.I recommend this book with or without "reservations."

A fascinating read. Holloway totally drew me into his impressionistic depiction of a slice of life in the lives of aboriginal people eking out an existence in arctic Alaska that few of us could ever even imagine. Un-sugar-coated and often raw…it’s boldly honest...while also painting vivid images of the beauty and harshness of arctic survival in a mostly non-monetary, subsistence lifestyle.Even more interesting than the story narrative is how the author propelled himself into and became perhaps the key player in protecting the caribou calving grounds in the Arctic Natural Wildlife Refuge from oil development….against incredible odds.Was it the author’s experience watching 90-something year old Johnny Frank risk his life on a regular basis just to eat and keep him and his wife alive? Was it Holloway’s personal experiences being and traveling with the old Indian in the Brooks Range that led him to not hesitate when ultimate survival of the people he learned to so love demanded immediate action?This story reveals how hardship and hunger and loss can put one in touch with what REALLY matters in life, and then take the steps required….and engage in a selfless struggle to protect that world for the continued survival and existence of others.The will and character to do what is necessary to save a century’s old man/animal relationship, irrespective of personal consequences, totally consumed this reader. It’s an exciting ride.

This book is a documentary that chronicles the strength of character of J. Michael Holloway MD. In easy reading format, he documents the struggles through an education process in the Deep South. You get the image of the character of the man in his early descriptions of his dealings with the Citadel and medical school. In his quest to see Alaska, he is not interested in visiting the populated areas of Alaska but wants to venture to where the road ends and beyond. He offers a glimpse of the life in remote Alaska and the way of the Gwich'in people. An elderly Gwich'in couple, Johnny and Sarah Frank, befriended him and share with him a life in the arctic that has sustained people for centuries. His stories are enlightening and the endurance needed to sustain life in that harsh environment was clear. The fruits of Holloway's baptism to this lifestyle yielded an uncompromising attitude to preserve the Alaska lands that nurture these people and their way of life. His political activity to protect the arctic with the same conviction that led him to the Gwich'in land was evident. The story was compelling and the book difficult to put down until it's conclusion.

. Up close and personnel account of life in Alaska during the last half of the nineteenth century. An accounting of the warm friendship a young man developed with an aging Alaskan family especially the father, Johnny Franks. The stories Johnny told provided a deep insight to the love and respect this Indian had for the land and God's creatures. Using phrases such as "I was dreaming Bears" gives the reader a rare look into the personality of Johnny Franks. I always thought of Alaska as beautiful but hostile environment and I appreciated the ability of the natives to survive there. By actually hiking many miles in an extremely difficult environment the author earned the lessons that only come with real experiences. I was impressed with the love he (the Author) developed for Alaska and the efforts he exhibited to help protect this vast wilderness and the native Indians that still live there. This book and the efforts of Dr. Holloway in Washington will aid the continuing protection of this invaluable part of our great country. Thanks Mike