FAMOUS AMERICAN EXPLORERS

by Bern Keating ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 13, 1972

The visual interpretations of Frederic Remington, Edward Moran, and Charles Russell convey a sense of grandeur and Keating's informed, but nicely informal, narrative searches out colorful anecdotes from the explorers' experiences -- one Jean Nicolet, for example, carried with him a silk ceremonial robe just in case he reached China in his canoe. This companion to Famous American Trails (1971) begins at the beginning with Leif Ericson and Cabeza de Vaca, but the heart of the text are the stories of the couriers de bois, excerpts from the journals of Lewis and Clark, and the slightly shady undertakings of Zebulon Pike. Keating doesn't hesitate to tell us what to think (General James Wilkinson was ""one of the most villainous traitors in American history"" while Pike is a master of ""bumbleship""), but it all makes for riproaring high profile adventure.

Pub Date: Nov. 13, 1972

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Rand McNally

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1972

Categories: NONFICTION