She Treads Softly: North of Ordinary

Friday, February 20, 2026

North of Ordinary

North of Ordinary: How One Woman Left It All Behind for Wilderness and Wonder in Alaska's Frozen Frontier Book Cover

North of Ordinary by Sue Aikens, with Michael Vlessides
3/10/26; 304 pages
Sourcebooks

North of Ordinary by Sue Aikens is a highly recommended memoir covering the author's difficult childhood, coming-of-age alone in Alaska, starting a family in the Lower 48, and eventually life at Kavik River Camp in Alaska, 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle. Aikens was the star of National Geographic’s Life Below Zero.

There is no question that starting as a child Aikens's life has been a long fight for survival and her autobiography honestly covers it all. It was rather shocking when her mother abandoned her in Alaska at age twelve. The fortitude required to survive in Alaska on her own at that young age highlighted the personal strength and determination which is was evident throughout her life. Aikens resilience and self reliance are a strength which serve her well and reflect the harsh reality of living in the wilds of Alaska, while also cementing her love for and connection with the land.

She does head south to the lower 48 states, marries twice, and has two children. When her children were teens, she felt she was losing part of herself in the busy life around her and she craved solitude. She moved back to Alaska and eventually became the manager/owner of the Kavik River Camp in Alaska’s North Slope, 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle. In this remote location she experienced brutal winters and the constant threat from wildlife. It is a harsh, unforgiving life of hard work and solitude that also provides a beauty of its own. The story of the bear attack is brutal.

Aikens was the star of National Geographic’s Life Below Zero which ran for 23 seasons from 2013-2025. Admittedly, I do not watch much TV and did not know who Aikens was before agreeing to read an advanced review copy of her memoir. Anyone who enjoys survival stories or tales of rugged, remote living circumstances, as well as fans of the TV show, will definitely appreciate this memoir. I, however, did question some of her choices which were never adequately explained.

North of Ordinary is a great choice for fans of the long running National Geographic TV series Life Below Zero. Thanks to Sourcebooks for providing me with an advance reader's copy via Edelweiss. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

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John Updike's six rules for reviewing:

1. Try to understand what the author wished to do, and do not blame him for not achieving what he did not attempt.

2. Give him enough direct quotation--at least one extended passage--of the book's prose so the review's reader can form his own impression, can get his own taste.

3. Confirm your description of the book with quotation from the book, if only phrase-long, rather than proceeding by fuzzy precis.

4. Go easy on plot summary, and do not give away the ending.

5. If the book is judged deficient, cite a successful example along the same lines, from the author's oeuvre or elsewhere. Try to understand the failure. Sure it's his and not yours?

To these concrete five might be added a vaguer sixth, having to do with maintaining a chemical purity in the reaction between product and appraiser.....Review the book, not the reputation.... Better to praise and share than blame and ban. The communion between reviewer and his public is based upon the presumption of certain possible joys in reading, and all our discriminations should curve toward that end.