Take a photo of a barcode or cover
421 reviews for:
Welcome to the Goddamn Ice Cube: Chasing Fear and Finding Home in the Great White North
Blair Braverman
3.89 AVERAGE
421 reviews for:
Welcome to the Goddamn Ice Cube: Chasing Fear and Finding Home in the Great White North
Blair Braverman
3.89 AVERAGE
Welcome to the Goddamn Ice Cube is a weird book, or at least not what I was expecting. Maybe I was hoping for more of an authentic adventure of someone facing hardships in the outdoors, but I never got that feeling. Blair Braverman is rarely ever facing any hardships other than the cold. While we nibble on small portions of her dog sledding, we're mostly force-fed a memoir that fluctuates over various timelines that is at times like watching Northern Exposure on television or Blair surrounding herself with some of the the most unlikable characters a person could come across. Most of the men in this book are sad and broken, which makes her story more depressing than adventurous.
I really had high-hopes for this book, but felt pretty let-down in the end. There's nothing really interesting or redeeming about her story, except maybe her romantic relationship with Quince, a transgender male who is pretty much the only emotionally available person that she forms a connection with.
I really had high-hopes for this book, but felt pretty let-down in the end. There's nothing really interesting or redeeming about her story, except maybe her romantic relationship with Quince, a transgender male who is pretty much the only emotionally available person that she forms a connection with.
ARGH! I follow Blair Braverman on Twitter and I love her writing and her dogs and her husband and I’m rooting for her to finish the Iditarod. This is her book about finding herself and living in Alaska and Norway and trying to find what life she was destined to live. Except…
I feel like Braverman wrote one piece of work, the publisher marketed the book as another and I really wanted to read the book the publisher said it was. Easily 85% of this book is stories about the fucked up men of the north (there’s a calendar idea) who Blair had to endure. The stories are well-written and her talent is completely evident but … I didn’t want to read their stories. There are sled dogs on the cover and rapey men in the pages.
Two stars. Trigger warning for rape and rapeiness. I still love Blair and her dogs and her husband and I’m still rooting for her to win the Iditarod.
I feel like Braverman wrote one piece of work, the publisher marketed the book as another and I really wanted to read the book the publisher said it was. Easily 85% of this book is stories about the fucked up men of the north (there’s a calendar idea) who Blair had to endure. The stories are well-written and her talent is completely evident but … I didn’t want to read their stories. There are sled dogs on the cover and rapey men in the pages.
Two stars. Trigger warning for rape and rapeiness. I still love Blair and her dogs and her husband and I’m still rooting for her to win the Iditarod.
This was a phenomenal book about finding yourself and figuring out what your own happiness looks like. Blair's writing is gritty and honest and beautiful.
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
longwinded and disorganized. still, kind of heartwarming and interesting at times. i wish it was a bit more focused. i think the main focus is living in this quirky engaging town in norway and her relationship with the shopkeeper arl. or however you spell it (i listened to this on audiobook). i found it odd that she kept going back to the alaska story when she was 19/20. and also the study abroad when she was 16/17. it weirdly turned into a book about like... sex and sexual assault, and i dont think braverman really got to anything interesting or reflective enough about that. it was just confusing how she kept flipping back and forth in between all these different time periods and locations, and seemingly for no reason.
Wolfed this one down in less than 24 hours. About 300 pages of human beings, enthusiastic pups and raw emotions. Words currently escaping me. Won't feel anything else until tomorrow I suppose.
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Ok, 3.5. Don't get me wrong, Blair Braverman's twitter is a big part of what is getting me through this current administration...but I really struggled with this for some reason.
Absolutely astonishing. Easily one of my favorite memoirs encountered over the last few years. Incredibly relatable content in re living with fear while being a woman in the world. I do recommend the audiobook; the author has a lovely voice and I enjoyed hearing her pronunciations, none of which I would have accurately recreated in my head while reading silently.
this is a story about a woman who fights for her dream even when the world puts her down. the fight is not always straightforward but she finds herself within it