I have been traveling nearly a month, promoting my new book from Denver to San Francisco. Everywhere I went people came to hear stories and see pictures not of Alaska but rather, of small-town, community life. What I learned is that Haines’ appeal lies chiefly in what it is not: i.e., Juneau, Ketchikan, or Skagway. One five-star chef from Portland told me he had just been a celebrity chef on an Alaska cruise. When he…