Jun 23
My Lead Dog Was A Lesbian: Mushing Across Alaska in the Iditarod–the World’s Most Grueling Race
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- ISBN13: 9780679764113
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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Product Description
O’Donoghue tells what happened when he entered the 1991 Iditarod, along with 17 sled dogs with names like Rainy, Harley and Screech. O’Donoghue braved snowstorms, sickening wipeouts, and endured the contempt of more experienced racers. Narrated with icy elan and self deprecating wit, this is a true story of heroism, cussedness, and astonishing dumb luck.
My Lead Dog Was A Lesbian: Mushing Across Alaska in the Iditarod–the World’s Most Grueling Race
5 Responses to “My Lead Dog Was A Lesbian: Mushing Across Alaska in the Iditarod–the World’s Most Grueling Race”
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June 23rd, 2010 at 12:17 pm
A dynamite read even for someone who has never lived north of Key West, who has never even heard of the Iditarod, and who hates dogs. Adds credence to the fact that I never read fiction..life is a lot stranger, and a lot more exciting
Rating: 4 / 5
June 23rd, 2010 at 2:00 pm
Of the Iditarod books I’ve read this has to rank as one of the best. Apparently a good sense of humor and a high appreciation of irony is a necessary component of being a Musher.
Rating: 4 / 5
June 23rd, 2010 at 2:40 pm
I enjoyed this book about the iditarod and mushing, something I didn’t know much about before. I found the book informative and interesting. It wasn’t as humorous as I thought it might be (no laugh out loud moments), and the format was a bit confusing – the author flips back and forth to other mushers and other time periods – but it was a quick read and I learned a little about something new (for me). I also know that while I’ll stay off the iditarod trail, I might check the race out online this year. It’s an interesting sport, for a very special type of person.
Rating: 4 / 5
June 23rd, 2010 at 5:29 pm
I live in CA now, but I’m originally from Minnesota and try to get back to MN for at least two winter weeks every year – yes, in WINTER! This year I’m trying to put together a dogsledding day trip for the whole family when visiting MN. I bought this book a few years ago, and it’s always stuck in my mind. It made me determined to at least try mushing, even if only as a tourist! If you ever get a chance to see the start of a dogsledding race, you will be amazed and pumped at how they have to restrain the dogs at the starting pole. They want to RUN so badly, it’s an awesome sight.
Rating: 5 / 5
June 23rd, 2010 at 7:09 pm
Every once in a while we go up to Ely, MN, and spend a day or so dogsledding. So, prior to this year’s trip, I bought a few books on the Iditarod and mushing in general.
With the Iditarod in the news right now (especially with the legally blind woman competing this year) I figured I’d learn more about that particular grueling race. This was the first book I got, as the title caught my eye and the reviews were good.
About 1/3 the way into the book, the jumping around between the various mushers and their stories started to get annoying. While I was interested in the various stories, interspersing them in a sort of “time line” format along with O’Donoghue’s own experiences was not something I, myself, particularly enjoyed. There were other things about his writing style that seemed to indicate the book was written for his associates and the people with whom he raced, rather than the public at large. As a reporter, it made sense that O’Donoghue would toss in some short human interest stories of the other mushers. But he also had a few nicknames and references that seemed to be for the benefit of those in the know.
Then I made the mistake of picking up Gary Paulsen’s Winterdance before I had finished this one. What a huge difference!
I reluctantly came back to My Lead Dog Was A Lesbian and am still trying to finish it. After Paulsen, it just isn’t the same. Not to mention his overuse of the word “lesbian” as an adjective, almost as if he felt it necessary to justify the title of the book. OK, the dog was “confused”. We get that. But halfway through the book I started noticing he was referring to her as “the little lesbian” or “the lesbian” more often than anything else (like “my lead dog” or her name), and once that sort of thing is noticed, you know, it then just sort of jumps off the page at you. So it’s gotten to the point where, when I read that description of his lead dog my eyes roll and I tend to flinch. Gahhh not another one!
I’m still stuck somewhere in the middle of the Iditarod with “O’D” and just can’t quite bring myself to pick it back up. He doesn’t convey anywhere near the appreciation or love of the dogs that Paulsen does, and it is, after all, all about the dogs. Or should be.
If you want objective, dry facts and figures, this is your book. If you want the soul of mushing, read Paulsen.
Rating: 3 / 5