Local author Nick Jans has a new a photo storybook that retells the tale of a wolf that forged friendships with dogs and owners alike near Mendenhall Glacier. “A True Alaska Tale: Romeo the Friendly Wolf” follows the six years between 2003 and 2009 that Romeo became part of the Juneau community. It was released last week.
Jans published his New York Times bestseller novel “A Wolf Called Romeo” in 2014. Jans said “Romeo the Friendly Wolf,” published almost a decade later, has the added advantage of distance and perspective. He said making it accessible was another priority.
“I want adults to read it to their kids… kids matter most of all. They’re the ones that make change in this world,” said Jans. He also hopes that the book will be able to reach cruise ship passengers who don’t speak English.
This is Jans’ 14th book, and his first that features photography more than writing. “I’m a writer who takes pictures and the pictures help tell the story,” he said.
Jans came to Alaska in 1979 looking to live around big wild animals in a big wild place. He lived more than 20 years in small Inupiaq villages along the Kobuk River in the Northwest Arctic. He worked as a big game guide, trading post manager, and high school teacher. In the late 1990s, he met his wife and moved to Southeast Alaska but still returns to his home near Ambler for a few months each year.
“I didn’t come [to Alaska] to be a writer, I came here to live,” said Jans.
In Juneau, Jans and his wife Sherrie built their house on the shore of Mendenhall Lake. They met Romeo while walking their dog, Dakotah, and a connection was instantly formed between dog and wolf.
“Usually you have contact with a wild animal and you never see them again,” said Jans. However, Romeo kept coming back.
“At times during the winter he would come and go but sometimes he’d be there for a period of weeks, and have dozens of interactions with dogs,” said Jans. But then one day, Romeo did not come back.
Years later, reminiscing on Romeo brought tears to Jans’ eyes on more than one occasion. His voice trembled with emotion as he recalled the impact that Romeo had on the people who grew to love him.
“That this book is coming out is proof that he’s not going anywhere. His story trots on,” he said.
The story of Romeo has proved to be an inspiration for many. Jans said he still gets letters from people around the world who read “A Wolf Called Romeo,” which has been translated into seven languages. An exhibit for Romeo was built in 2017 at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center, and last year the Orpheus Project, a Juneau non-profit, hosted a festival of sorts celebrating Romeo’s life.
Todd Hunt, artistic director for the Orpheus Project, said the celebration included “many different artists and their interpretation of what Romeo means to them.” He read Jans’ first book as soon as it came out and realized it “needed some musical treatment,” prompting him to compose a cantata that became part of a two-act piece named “Wolf Songs.”
“I always thought that what I should do is to make the life and death of this exceptional wolf count for something,” said Jans.
He said he wants to keep telling Romeo’s story through his new book, which he said speaks to the heart of humanity’s relationship to the wild.
“If you can make friends with a wild wolf, and he made friends with us, then we need to at least metaphorically make friends with nature,” said Jans.
The Haines library will host a book-signing event with Jans on Wednesday, July 26 at 6 p.m.