When Mom connected with someone, she maintained a strong friendship throughout her life. Mom always liked “real people” without pretense, and she identified with the North Slope Inupiat, which makes sense because Inupiaq literally means “real or genuine people” (inuk ‘person’ plus -piaq ‘real, genuine’) in the Inupiaq language. Julie’s stalwart personality in Julie of the Wolves is clearly a tribute to those friendships and the people of Barrow.
