Coming into the Country: Alaska’s Energy Desk celebrates the 40th anniversary of the book that shared Alaska with the world
When it was first published 40 years ago, John McPhee’s bestselling book “Coming into the Country” described a state so distant and remote from most readers that McPhee called it “a foreign country significantly populated by Americans.” The book is a snapshot of a pivotal moment in Alaska’s timeline: after the discovery of oil but before the first barrel flowed down the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. When read today, the book seems almost prophetic in how it sets up the enduring tension between preservation and development that drives the state today.
In January, Alaska’s Energy Desk celebrates the anniversary of “Coming into the Country” with a series of stories and programs that explore the Alaskan landscape of 1977 and today.
- Tune in to Talk of Alaska with special guest John McPhee, January 24, 2017, 10am (What should we ask him? Submit your questions for the author)
- Join us in studio for a forum with Pat Pourchot (in Anchorage), Willie Hensley (in Juneau) and other guests who can speak first-hand about the book, January 24, 2017, 7pm
- Listen to Alaska’s Energy Desk reports throughout the week as we follow up with characters from Coming into the Country and the legacy the book holds in Alaska
