Velma Wallis
Encyclopedia
Velma Wallis is an Athabascan Indian and bestselling U.S. novelist. Her work has been translated into 17 languages.
. This location could be accessed only by riverboat, airplane, snowmobile or dogsled. Velma grew up among twelve siblings. Her father died when she was thirteen years old, and she stayed out of school to help her mother with the household. (She later went on to receive her GED diploma, which is a High School equivalent.)
About twelve miles away from the village, her father had once built a small cabin in the wilderness. He had been an active hunter and trapper. Some time after his death Velma surprised her family and friends by leaving home and living in the cabin for some years. She perfected her trapping, fishing and hunting skills and lived on what she could provide for herself. At one point her mother joined her during the summer to teach her more of the traditional skills needed to survive. In this area, where the Porcupine River
flows into the Yukon River
, Velma Wallis lived an independent lifestyle. These experiences led directly to her first book, Two Old Women
, which astonished her publisher by selling 1.5 million copies worldwide.
Velma Wallis, who has three daughters and a son, now divides her time between Fairbanks and Fort Yukon.
Life and work
She was born and raised in a remote Alaskan village near Fort Yukon, approximately 200 km north-east of FairbanksFairbanks, Alaska
Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...
. This location could be accessed only by riverboat, airplane, snowmobile or dogsled. Velma grew up among twelve siblings. Her father died when she was thirteen years old, and she stayed out of school to help her mother with the household. (She later went on to receive her GED diploma, which is a High School equivalent.)
About twelve miles away from the village, her father had once built a small cabin in the wilderness. He had been an active hunter and trapper. Some time after his death Velma surprised her family and friends by leaving home and living in the cabin for some years. She perfected her trapping, fishing and hunting skills and lived on what she could provide for herself. At one point her mother joined her during the summer to teach her more of the traditional skills needed to survive. In this area, where the Porcupine River
Porcupine River
The Porcupine River is a river that runs through Alaska and the Yukon. Having its source in the Ogilvie Mountains north of Dawson City, Yukon, it flows north, veers to the southwest, goes through the community of Old Crow, Yukon, flowing into the Yukon River at Fort Yukon, Alaska...
flows into the Yukon River
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...
, Velma Wallis lived an independent lifestyle. These experiences led directly to her first book, Two Old Women
Two Old Women
Two Old Women is a 1993 novel by Velma Wallis, set in Fairbanks, Alaska.In archaic times: Two old women spend the winter abandoned by their tribe in the wilderness.- Plot summary :...
, which astonished her publisher by selling 1.5 million copies worldwide.
Velma Wallis, who has three daughters and a son, now divides her time between Fairbanks and Fort Yukon.
Awards
- 2003 American Book AwardAmerican Book AwardThe American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
, for Raising Ourselves: A Gwich'in Coming of Age Story from the Yukon River - 1993 Western States Book Award