BOOKENDS

BOOKENDS ALASKA RV PARK TALES - BY KATHLEEN UTECHT

Local author, Kathleen Utecht, tells us about her adventures owning an RV park in Alaska. There is a little history about Alaska, and then we move into chapters that share stories about the adventures during their ten years owning the Homestead RV Park in Palmer, Alaska

Becky and Pam

Pam and Becky have been reviewing books for over 10 years.

Pam and her husband have lived in Parker for 19 years with their two wonderful sons. She has always been an avid reader and enjoys exploring new books.

Becky has been married for 24 years and lived in Parker for 10 years. She has two children, a daughter and a son. She is a Colorado native and has loved reading since she was a child.

BECKY Christmas is a busy time of year, so I chose a book that was entertaining and easy to read a chapter at a time. I have always had the desire to travel to Alaska, but it seems like such a harsh environment. Did this little book stoke or extinguish any desire you may have to travel to Alaska?

PAM I have also wanted to travel to Alaska and enjoyed reading about the area! It definitely didn’t dampen my desire to visit, but I may not want to take an RV up there in early spring! One of my favorite things about traveling is enjoying the local wildlife, and there were many stories about the critters that were encountered on their journeys. Were you surprised by the variety of local wildlife? BECKY My favorite stories were about the animals they encountered. I recently moved to 35 acres, and I can relate to the interesting moments wildlife brings to a normal day. I can deal with those surprises, but I’m not sure I would have any interest in driving the Alcan highway. Those were some terrifying situations! Would you brave that highway?

PAM I would love the adventure of the Alcan highway, but definitely not with a fifth wheel! Our family has many stories of minor mishaps with our truck and camper growing up, but the challenges in the book were certainly more than minor mishaps. They met many different people due to the nature of owning an RV park. Between new employees and visitors to their park, many people came and went from their lives. I would struggle with the transient nature, which might make it hard to form strong relationships. Would this aspect be a positive or negative for you?

BECKY I can not wrap my head around leaving my home for a whole season, let alone all the other aspects of running an RV park. It would be a negative for me to own the park, but I enjoy our family RV trips and the short stay at the parks. This is a cute little book if you enjoy short stories and want a quick read.

Happy Holidays! We wish you and your family a blessed holiday and New Year. We always enjoy sharing our love of reading with our community and have discussed many different books over the years. As we move into the new year we will be closing this chapter of Bookends. Thank you for sharing your love of reading with us over the years. We have always enjoyed hearing your thoughts and connections to the novels we discuss. We wish you an unending line of wonderful books that inspire, challenge, entertain, and change you.

Pam and Becky

“Books are the plane, and the train, and the road. They are the destination, and the journey. They are home.” - Anna Quindlen