Inside Passage: Living With Killer Whales, Bald Eagles, and Kwakiutl Indians

Rating:
Summary: Seeing through his eyes
Review: I was fortunate enough to recently be on an Alaskan Inside Passage Cruise on which Michael was a guest speaker. He presented four slide presentations during the week. The content for the programs came from this book. He describes the sights and the sounds that I witnessed during the week with such zest! It would have been foolish not to purchase the book as the perfect souvenir from the trip to Alaska. Reading the book is like reliving some of my brief experiences in that beautiful part of the world and the chance to experience other things through his eyes. Kudos to Michael for his very adept way with words and great visual descriptions. I will read it again and again!

Rating:
Summary: Grace and Beauty
Review: I went to Alaska this past summer and it was as magical as I always dreamed it would be. By reading Mr. Modzelewski book I revisited it with the eye of a poet. The way he wove together his daily life was better than reading a novel. As I read the book, in my mind's eye the events would unfold right in front of me. Mr. Modzelewski is the type of writer that takes his readers along on his journey. I cried and laughed along with the friends he aquired along the way. When I went to Alaska I felt that something inside of me changed in a very profound way, I don't think anyone can witness a 1000 year old glacier calving and not understand that we are all connected in a very strong yet tenuous web of nature. For those who will never get to make the journey to Alsaka I suggest that the read this book. It is the next best thing for any bibliophile or even the causual recreational reader. He took the spectacular, brought in down to earth, all while using all the colors in his box of crayons.

Rating:
Summary: INVIGORATING AND INSPIRATIONAL!
Review: I'd like to start out with my favorite quote from Michael Modzelewski, "Sometimes you have to lower your standard of living to reach a higher level." I have sailed the inside passage via cruise ship 5 times and every time I read "INSIDE PASSAGE" brings back all the wonderful memories and magical moments I have experienced in this wild and untamed wilderness.
Michael lived with killer and humpback whales, bald eagles, Kwakiutl Indians on the surrounding Islands, Tuffy the cat, Cottonwood the ridgeback dog, and my favorite raven named Blackie! On page 59 is a hilarious story about Blackie!! Michael lived in Will Malloff's 12x34 ft. home with no t.v., indoor plumbing, electricity,no car or grocery store. No traffic jams,pollution or noise of any kind, and all you can eat fish in the sea was the trade off! You will learn what Michael needed to do to survive 18 months on Swanson Island.
This is one of those books you read over and over and underline everything. I'm going to close with another of Michael's quotes,
"I touched the whale; she touched me; and what passed between us changed me forever." Reading this book and meeting Michael changed me forever. This book inspired and motivated me to take some risks in life, to travel, and to dream big because dreams do come true,look at Michael's!

Rating:
Summary: INVIGORATING AND INSPIRATIONAL!
Review: I'd like to start out with my favorite quote from Michael Modzelewski, "Sometimes you have to lower your standard of living to reach a higher level." I have sailed the inside passage via cruise ship 5 times and every time I read "INSIDE PASSAGE" brings back all the wonderful memories and magical moments I have experienced in this wild and untamed wilderness.
Michael lived with killer and humpback whales, bald eagles, Kwakiutl Indians on the surrounding Islands, Tuffy the cat, Cottonwood the ridgeback dog, and my favorite raven named Blackie! On page 59 is a hilarious story about Blackie!! Michael lived in Will Malloff's 12x34 ft. home with no t.v., indoor plumbing, electricity,no car or grocery store. No traffic jams,pollution or noise of any kind, and all you can eat fish in the sea was the trade off! You will learn what Michael needed to do to survive 18 months on Swanson Island.
This is one of those books you read over and over and underline everything. I'm going to close with another of Michael's quotes,
"I touched the whale; she touched me; and what passed between us changed me forever." Reading this book and meeting Michael changed me forever. This book inspired and motivated me to take some risks in life, to travel, and to dream big because dreams do come true,look at Michael's!

Rating:
Summary: INVIGORATING AND INSPIRATIONAL!
Review: I'd like to start out with my favorite quote from Michael Modzelewski, "Sometimes you have to lower your standard of living to reach a higher level." I have sailed the inside passage via cruise ship 5 times and every time I read "INSIDE PASSAGE" brings back all the wonderful memories and magical moments I have experienced in this wild and untamed wilderness.
Michael lived with killer and humpback whales, bald eagles, Kwakiutl Indians on the surrounding Islands, Tuffy the cat, Cottonwood the ridgeback dog, and my favorite raven named Blackie! On page 59 is a hilarious story about Blackie!! Michael lived in Will Malloff's 12x34 ft. home with no t.v., indoor plumbing, electricity,no car or grocery store. No traffic jams,pollution or noise of any kind, and all you can eat fish in the sea was the trade off! You will learn what Michael needed to do to survive 18 months on Swanson Island.
This is one of those books you read over and over and underline everything. I'm going to close with another of Michael's quotes,
"I touched the whale; she touched me; and what passed between us changed me forever." Reading this book and meeting Michael changed me forever. This book inspired and motivated me to take some risks in life, to travel, and to dream big because dreams do come true,look at Michael's!

Rating:
Summary: An Affair With The Wild
Review: In "Inside Passage", Michael Modzelewski bounds bravely into adventure in a way many of us have merely fantasized about. Living on a remote island in the inner corridor of Alaskan wilderness, Modzelewski pits himself against Mother Nature, not as opponent, but with reverence and great humility at heart. Having the courage to endure and survive "outside the box", Modzelewski's impassioned and inspired stories communicate a spiritual depth, awareness and understanding that nourishes the soul. With the wonder of a child and the wisdom of a warrior, we are taken on a journey that awakens all our senses, leaving us with awe and respect for a rugged and unrelenting land overflowing with magic and mystery.

Rating:
Summary: An Affair With The Wild
Review: In "Inside Passage", Michael Modzelewski bounds bravely into adventure in a way many of us have merely fantasized about. Living on a remote island in the inner corridor of Alaskan wilderness, Modzelewski pits himself against Mother Nature, not as opponent, but with reverence and great humility at heart. Having the courage to endure and survive "outside the box", Modzelewski's impassioned and inspired stories communicate a spiritual depth, awareness and understanding that nourishes the soul. With the wonder of a child and the wisdom of a warrior, we are taken on a journey that awakens all our senses, leaving us with awe and respect for a rugged and unrelenting land overflowing with magic and mystery.

Rating:
Summary: Adventure That Knows No Bounds
Review: In my country of Russia Jack London has always been popular as Tolstoy. After reading Meester Modzelewski's Inside Passage I will say that this writer, too is very loved. I bought book while in Alaska on work. I don't know what nationalty the author is but he has most a Russian Soul! In writing so very good about North country, he also describing many feelings of Russians about Mother Earth, snow, the stars, animals,adventure. He is writer for all seasons and places and so happy I will see that more Russians read him.

Rating:
Summary: Picture This!
Review: In this wonderful book, Mr. Modzelewski reverses the saying that "A picture is worth a thousand words." With the style of a poet using compressed, precise sentences the author gives us vivid word pictures of northern nature. You don't read this book as much as see it unfold with great force and beauty across the mind's eye. In the days since finishing "Inside Passage" I've come to the conclusion that Mr. Modzelewski is really a modern shaman, drawing direct power and grace from the land and animals. That's why the prose pictures are so clear, for they are unfiltered by Ego. By surrenduring himself to the wilderness (instead of trying to dominate it like most men that write this type of book), the wilderness rises up to show itself directly through him.

Rating:
Summary: Spiritual Magic from a Magical Man.
Review: Inside Passage is a book for the ages. An awe-inspiring piece of work that has left me both breathless and wanting more. Each image is created with such care and heart, the spirit of a "warrior" and the heart of a "man" shines through in each page. Inside Passage will leave an idelible mark on both the reader and the readers soul. A must read for anybody who has ever had a dream or a person seeking refuge in the majestic landscape of the Alaskan wilds. Modzleweski presents a totally-balanced account. Unlike many authors who've left the city for the wilds he doesn't "deify" Native Americans. He describes each Kwakiutl he meets as an individual with different life-styles, education-levels, and manners of speaking. Inside Passage brings out the raw and harsh natural laws man must live by in the wilderness, but intertwined within that plot is a story of unharnessed adventure and a life worth living. Having visited the Inside Passage the past two summers, I can say that the author brought the area totally alive! In the economical and passionate-style of a poet, Modzelewski goes far-beneath the surface of an awesome place. Most of all, he takes the reader on a spiritual VisionQuest-where as he describes it:"The Inside Passage is real dream country. Even on land you are moved. The tides that carry the great whales move the bulk of your thoughts just as effortlessly. On the islands, the surrounding sea enters your subconcious, creating a rippling mirror that reflects reality from many perspectives. There is no concrete to fix attitudes, harden dreams. The world around you constantly flows in many levels, swirling deep fathoms into you, loosening holdfasts and safeguards, stirring up sediment, provoking protean change." Reading this book changed my life. Now I see the world through un-biased eyes. Life is a challenge and a blessing, I accept it with passion and un-dying gratitude. Mr. Modzelewski has opened my eyes to a world I never knew existed, and for that I am forever en-debted to him. This book will change you; I guarantee it!