Two Old Women

Two elderly Gwich'in women, Sa' and Ch'idzigyaak, are left behind in the Alaskan wilderness as winter approaches — a desperate gamble by their tribe to ensure at least one of them survives. Armed with nothing but an old man's hatchet and a moose-hide babiche, they set out on foot across frozen rivers and snowfields toward a distant camp where help might be found. Velma Wallis's 1993 novel is a propulsive survival tale told in short, lyrical chapters that build momentum as the two women battle hunger, cold, and their own failing bodies against an unforgiving landscape.