From Publishers Weekly
Though it joins a crowded field of Lewis and Clark narratives, this formidable third novel by Hall (The Saskiad) is not to be dismissed. Narrated in multiple distinct voices, this retelling of the story of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark's legendary expedition is less a historical blow-by-blow than an engaging character study of the two men. Hall focuses on a few significant episodes in the journey-such as the hunting accident that wounds Lewis and causes him to sink into his famous depression-as seen through the eyes of Lewis, Sacagawea, Clark and Toussaint Charbonneau, Sacagawea's French fur trader husband. The result is a memorable portrait of the expedition leaders. Lewis is melancholy but ambitious and erudite, worried that he doesn't have the literary skill to render their adventures and discoveries. The sunnier Clark has the sensibility of an artist and the courage of a soldier, but he lacks the fortitude and discipline to build on his advantages. Hall is especially interested in the encounters between Native Americans and white explorers, and he details the violent struggles with Blackfeet Indians and others. Some readers may become frustrated with Sacagawea's stream-of-consciousness narration, in which proper nouns are not capitalized ("she remembered the raids in her own time, the one near beaver's head on blue crow's camp by the blackshoes when two bears' older brother (this one's bigfather), wolf tooth, was killed along with his son, chalk"), but the lyrical and precise prose will reward those who stick with it. In any case, such distractions are minor when measured against the rest of Hall's vivid, enthralling tableau.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Hall, the author of two previous novels and three works of nonfiction, has delivered a gorgeous historical novel about achievement and angst. Nearly 200 years have passed since Meriwether Lewis and William Clark set off on their expedition to the furthest reaches of the continent, and much ink has been spilled in the name of lionizing these two very different men. Hall's approach is different; while he clearly believes Lewis and Clark--as well as their Shoshone Indian guide Sacagawea--are important historical figures, he also views each as a complex and fascinating individual. Hall presents Lewis, the novel's main character, as a man prone to epic emotional highs and lows of equal magnitude. His journey with Clark was the accomplishment of a lifetime, and Lewis' attempts to deal with the journey's punishing realities are sharply drawn. From its beautifully written prologue to its understated conclusion, Hall's novel is big-hearted and satisfying. Not unlike Cormac McCarthy in his evocative descriptions of the landscape of a young nation, Hall is a versatile writer, and this is a wonderful book.
Kevin CanfieldCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
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