Customer Reviews (4)

f. mowat book
this is a great book.based on years of research.
i found it very informative and well-documented.

invitation to a sword fight
"Westviking" is entertaining and informative as is most of Farley Mowat's work.He has relied extensively on the Icelandic and Vinland sagas to recreate a lost world in which Scandinavian adventurers pushed through to colonize southern Greenland and then on to North America.The sagas are largely correct.Archaeology has revealed Greenland settlements and a settlement at Anse du Meadows in Newfoundland.The Vikings were a truly remarkable people.Although they arguably set back European civilization by their numerous raids and conquests, they became the Varangians of Byzantium; Russia was named for a Viking tribe, the Russ; they provided the first Csars of Kiev; the conquered out and named Normandy; they settled most of the British Isles; they settled the islands of the North, including Iceland, and they pushed all the way to North America.

Interestingly, their conquests are pertinent to present discussions on supposed human induced global warming.When Erik the Red went to southern Greenland, it was a green land.The Scandinavians could raise sheep and cattle on the grassy pastures.These pastures are now covered by ice.It is colder now than one thousand years ago.Al Gore--the man who discovered the internet--just might have it wrong.

Ron Braithwaite author of novels--"Skull Rack" and "Hummingbird God"--on the Spanish Conquest of Mexico

Excellent historical account of Norse exploration of America
Westviking is what I beleive to be the Best historical account of Pre Columbian exploration of North America. Farley Mowat takes accounts from ancient Norse, Native American & Inuvut (Eskimo) & brings themtogether for the first time in a creative and suspensful reading.Westviking is a must for fans of history, socialogy, or geneology. I givefive out five stars.

Mowat rethinks the Norse discovery of America
Canadian author Farley Mowat is perhaps the best-equipped person alive today (1998) to take a look at the remote history of the Norse voyages toNorth America. Combining the skills of seamanship, navigation and amateuranthropology with those of the historian and trained scientist (he is abiologist), this unique writer has brought a very fine light to bear inthis 1965 work which is just as relevant today as it was over 30 yearsago.

Amongst the more remarkable attributes of this lengthy examinationof the old Icelandic and Norwegian sagas, is the locating of the probablesites for the major voyages of Eric the Red and Leif Ericsson and thewell-argued contention that neither of them was the first man to make adocumented voyage to the New World. According to Mowat, that honour goes tothe little-known Norwegian trader, Barnji Herjolfsson, who probably gaveEric the Red his sailing directions.

Mowat doesn't take kindly to manyother conceptions about this period of Norse history and spendsconsiderable time debunking what he believes are myths created by scholarswho had no first-hand knowledge of either sailing or the particularcoastlines (Greenland, Newfoundland and Labrador) involved in the sagas.Indeed, his close examination of the available descriptions serves to pointvery much to the real sites as they might have been and show that many ofthe old theories (particularly to do with New England) have no value atall.

Sailing enthusiasts who love to read will come readily aboard thisvessel and perhaps pitch their own knowledge against or alongside Mowat andthe various Newfoundland schooner captains whom he interviewed to find outtheir opinions about prevailing winds and currents. All in all, it's adelightful book, not too difficult to read, even for non-nautical types(Mowat chose to create quite a number of appendixes to hold all the verydetailed information and make the main text easier to read - they work verywell) and anyone even remotely interested in finding out who, as far as weknow, actually did discover America (or thinks they may have had Vikingancestors), should pick this up. As an added bonus, if you enjoy this book,there are several more by Mowat on the same theme, and dozens more by himon a wide range of associated subjects (the Arctic, the environment,sailing, whales etc.). ... Read more

Product Description
One of Canada's most popular and controversial authors, Farley Mowat has written novels, short stories, nonfiction, screenplays, and children's literature. John Orange's detailed biography of Mowat follows this "anti-authoritarian, intensely nationalistic, environmentally aware, and passionately romantic" writer's life from his early childhood years to the present day, offering a fascinating look at a man, who, throughout his tireless efforts to better a degenerating world, has managed to maintain a keen sense of humor and a deep sense of compassion. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

First-rate history of the Arctic
Farley Mowat first went to Arctic climes as a boy during the 1930s. After the war he returned to the North, and began a career as an author which has continued for half a century. At the same time, he developed a deepattachment to the Canadian wilderness which has led him on a long andextraordinary voyage of personal discovery. In the late fifties, after adecade of Arctic activity, Mowat conceived the idea of writing a history ofthe major explorations which had taken place there. His purpose wastwofold: firstly, there was no other complete history available, although agreat deal of excellent material lay hidden away in out-of-print books andthe dusty corners of libraries.Secondly, he wanted to pay a tribute tothe men who first went into those sometimes inhospitable lands and as hesays, "...demonstrate the magnitude and grandeur of human endeavour in thathard environment."

"Ordeal by Ice" is the first of the three books inthe "Top of the World" series. It tells of a number of early expeditions tothe frozen north, starting with Henry Hudson's early 17th century voyage,which ended in tragedy and mystery. Indeed, tragedy of the most appallingkind awaited many of those who attempted to make their way through the"Icie Seas," and it is the attempt to progress against the fantastic oddsof the northern winter which makes the stories Mowat has collected socompelling. This is invigorating history, of a kind which Mowat has madehis own (see also "Sea of Slaughter," "People of the Deer," "The DesperatePeople" etc.). Not only has he done us a great service by bringing it outof its mothballs, so to speak, but he has also created a vital and highlyreadable saga of northern exploration that can be read for its own sake. ... Read more

Product Description
In 1953, Farley Mowat, a Canadian infantryman during World War II, returned to Europe, a place he knew only during the ravages of wartime. Together with his wife, he returns to England, France, and Italy to reexamine the past and find hope in the future. This is a unique and compelling look at a world that has undergone dramatic changes in the last fifty years, described in vintage Farley Mowat style. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A Middling Book by a Great Author
Babe Ruth was a great hitter.But he didn't connect with the ball everytime was was at bat.

Farley Mowat is a great writer.Sadly not all his books are home runs.If you would like to read some of his best then try:

-And No Birds Sang: The Farley Mowat Library
-The Grey Seas Under: The Perilous Rescue Mission of a N.A. Salvage Tug
or
-The Boat Who Wouldn't Float


Not every book written by a great author is a good book - we all have our off days.But that should not stop you from reading his best work.

Travels through place and time: Europe in the 50s
Farley Mowat has written a number of books which may be described as war memoirs. Since they were written at decent intervals and to some extent, for different purposes, there is a degree of repetition. Nevertheless, asthere is hardly ever a dull moment in a text by Mowat, we can forgive himfor telling the same story twice. To be honest, I'm no longer certain wherethe overlap occurs, although in "Aftermath," a book written comparativelyrecently, he certainly revisits some parts of the Italian theatre in whichhe served, and refers to the same events he has recounted in detailelsewhere ("And No Birds Sang"). But "Aftermath" doesn't dwell particularlyon war, and there are a number of stories in this ongoing narrative whichare worth reading by themselves. Scenes such as that where the author andhis wife visit the Black Eagle somewhere in Kent and procure some of theQueen's Brew are classic Mowat. Their visit to Amalfi and tour of itsancient potteries, and their final return to England where they visit withPeter Scott, son of the Antarctic explorer, and learn all about the SevernWild Fowl Trust, are just a couple of the highlights of this rather unusualjourney.

This is not your ordinary Mowat, but then I'm wondering if therereally is such a thing. An overlooked book, "Aftermath" won't disappoint,and fortunately for readers everywhere, thar's plenty more Mowat where thatcome from! ... Read more

Product Description
Farley Mowat describes an Arctic Summer spent watching and tracking the activities of a wolf family ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Mowat's take on Newfoundland
Aside from Wildlife and the Arctic, one of Mowat's greatest passions is The Rock, and in this book we find a tribute to this storied island and its people.The book really consists of selections from a number of earlier works, in particular Westviking and Sea of Slaughter, which have been placed in chronological order and perhaps reworked a bit.

good history of everyday life in a remote part of the world
Comprehensive history in terms of time (from the last Ice Age to the mid twentieth century)Mowat combines historical research with a personal experience of living on "The Rock" to make a facinatingly delicious, sometimes humorous, sometimes poignant read.Although it is clear that Mowat admires the people of Newfoundland tremendously, he gives a balanced perspective of life there from both an insider's view and an outsider's view. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A quarter century old, but still well worth the read.
This book is apparently a revised edition of Canada North which was published nine years earlier in 1967. I have yet to read Canada North, but from what I can gather is that Mowat set out to inform southern Canadians about a vast region of Canada which they had heretofore been ignoring: the vast, supposedly barren tiaga, tundra and arctic lands of the North. Up until this time, Canada was only asserting nominal control, and has essentially allowed missionaries, trappers and the HBC to impose themselves on the native peple of this region. Nine years later, things had changed significantly, and recognizing the new threat to the North, Mowat evidently reworked his original text in order to address these main concerns. Essentially what had happened was that the government of Canada found new reason to take an interest in the North because it was proving to be abundant in natural resources. This new-found interest in the North was clealry going to have detrimental consequences on both the people and environment of this region. In typical fashion, Mowat goes on the attack, lambasting the government and the multinational corporations fixing to exploit the North. Drawing on historical events both far in the distant past and only a few years old, Mowat shows how white interference and exploitation of the North and its people has had and will clealry have lasting consequences, consequences that will bring about the end of already serious disrupted traditional lifestyles of the various native peoples inhabiting this region. Mowat, an avid naturalist, also takes time to debunk the commonly held notion that the North is virtually devoid of flora and fauna. All in all, a very fascinating book by a man who has done much to expose the disgusting manner in which Canada has governed the North. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great Book of Canadian Editorial Cartoons!
This compilation includes the work of many of the best Canadian cartoonists, such as Aislin, Bierman and Rosen.The subject - impending work destruction is serious, but at least you may be able to laugh at thestupidity of mankind (or Homo Politicus). ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Old edition...always actual

It is an old edition, but always actual. It contains a chapter about extraction of natural resources in the Arctic with an effect of pollution that is certainly not old-fashioned, but the truth they (these communities) are confronted with, almost actual, created by what we know now about extraction in a few communities around the Arctic world... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Heritage Lost (book's subtitle)
It was serendipity that connected me to this book, found in a library used-books sale.It is an unusual book, especially in today's world, being in black & white (photographs, by John de Visser) and devoid of pagination(!?).It's about 200 pp, glossy, alternating sections of text and associated photographs which are without the explanation (or intrusion) of captions--both are quite good.One entry in the Amazon information listing puzzles me:an apparent indication of Reading ages "9 - 12" ?!This is NOT a child's book, by any means (I'm not sure how well readers in that age would do with it).For the nature of the book, I can do no better than to briefly quote the author and one of his Newfoundland subjects, respectively:

"When John de Visser and I resolved on the making of this book, we had in mind a mutual endeavour in which one art would complement the other [verbal/visual] in tenderly portraying the lineamnets of a world we loved.This book was to have been our celebration of the closed universe of sea and rock, plants and beasts, wind and fog that occcupies the primordial coasts of southern Newfoundland.But we particularly wished to celebrate the qualities of the people of that coast.They are the Antaean people, adamantine, indomitable, and profoundly certain of themselves.They are a natural people who have not lost, as we have lost, consciousness of unity with the natural world around them. ...But this was an illusion. ... We had not long been about our task when we began to recognize the change, and began to understand that our account was being transmuted, without our volition, into a requiem.We who had come to chronical human life in its most admirable guise remained to witness and record the passing of a people...." [Farley Mowat, from the Foreward]

[one "outport" man]"It's been fine you came to visit us.I hopes your 'snaps' turns out just what you was after, and that you'll make a good voyage out of them -- a prosperous voyage, you know.But still and all, I'm wondering could you, maybe, do one thing for we?Could you, do you think, say how it was with us?We wouldn't want it thought, you understand, that we never tried the hardest as was in us to make a go of things.We'd like for everyone to know we never would have left the places we was reared, but ... we ... was ... drove!" [sic]

And so one has a beautiful testament to the strength and genuiness of a people slowly forced from their once demanding but vital existence, by government policies, into "civilized society", such as it was circa 1960s. ... Read more