Roar of the Sea: Treachery, Obsession, and Alaska's Most Val

Over a century ago, treachery in Alaska's Bering Sea twice brought the world to the brink of war. The US seized Canadian vessels, Great Britain positioned warships to strike the US, and Americans killed Japanese pirates on US soil, all because of the fur seals that crowded onto the tiny Pribilof Islands. The herd's population plummeted while notorious seafarers like Alex MacLean poached indiscriminately. Enter an unlikely crusader to defend the seals: self-taught artist and naturalist Henry Wood Elliott, whose zeal and love for the animals inspired him to go against all odds and take on titans of the sea. Winning seemed impossible, and yet Elliott managed to expose corruption and set the course for modern wildlife protections that are all the more relevant today as the world grapples with mass extinction. Carefully written and researched Roar of the Sea reveals the incredible hidden history of how one lone activist existing in the margins prevailed against national governments and corporate interests in the name of wildlife conservation. Deb Vanasse is an author of novels, nonfiction books, and children's books, as well as a reporter, historian, and the co-founder of the Alaska statewide writing center 49 Writers. Deb's writing has been published in Alaska Magazine, and she has been interviewed by the Globe and Mail and CBC radio. She has given lectures for the National Park Service and several museums among other programs. For several years Deb lived in the Alaskan bush, and she has spent time on the Pribilof Islands. She currently lives in Oregon.