One of the premier novelists of the twentieth century, James A. Michener captures a frenzied time when sane men and women risked their very lives in a forbidding Arctic land to win a dazzling and elusive prize: Yukon gold. In 1897, gold fever sweeps the world. The promise of untold riches lures thousands of dreamers from all walks of life on a perilous trek toward fortune, failure—or death. Journey is an immersive account of the adventures of four English aristocrats and their Irish servant as they haul across cruel Canadian terrain toward the Klondike gold fields. Vivid and sweeping, featuring Michener’s probing insights into the follies and grandeur of the human spirit, this is the kind of novel only he could write.
Praise for Journey
“Stunning . . . Michener at his best.”—Houston Chronicle
“Michener brings sharply into focus the hardships encountered by those who dreamed of striking it rich.”—Associated Press
“Michener has amassed a peerless reputation as the heralded dean of the historical tome. . . . Journey is a book that envelops the reader in an atmosphere of hazardous escapades.”—Richmond Times-Dispatch
“Remarkable . . . superb literature.”—The Pittsburgh Press
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From the Publisher
Stunning . . . Michener at his best.”—Houston Chronicle
“Michener brings sharply into focus the hardships encountered by those who dreamed of striking it rich.”—Associated Press
“Michener has amassed a peerless reputation as the heralded dean of the historical tome. . . . Journey is a book that envelops the reader in an atmosphere of hazardous escapades.”—Richmond Times-Dispatch
“Remarkable . . . superb literature.”—The Pittsburgh Press
Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly
Appearing for the first time in paperback, Michener's 1989 novel follows a British expedition's doomed trek across Canada during the 1897 Klondike Gold Rush. (Nov.)
Library Journal
In July 1897, following the discovery of Klondike gold, four British aristocrats and their Irish servant set out from London to attempt the trek into the gold fields by an exclusively Canadian route. Twenty-three months later, after testing the limits of human endurance, only two men reach their goal. Why another novel (albeit a short one) by Michener about the frozen north so soon after Alaska ( LJ 7/88)? This episode was edited out of Alaska, but Michener, wanting to recount the Canadian role, resurrected it and fleshed it out (one chapter is nothing but British poetry). The plot is thin; the characters shallow; the ending unsatisfying. Only when he is describing terrain does Michener breathe life into this adventure tale. Buy for demand. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club dual main selection.-- Florence Scarinci, Nassau Community Coll. Lib., Garden City, N.Y.
School Library Journal
YA-- This book is a departure from Michener's traditional style of writing long, in-depth, historical sagas featuring one locality. Here he has taken one slice of history, the gold rush of 1897, and shown the courage of five men as they deal with adversity while trying to reach the gold. Four British aristocrats and one Irish servant start their journey in England with visions of finding gold in the wilds of Canada. It begins easily enough, but soon disaster meets them at every turn. Readers will be drawn in by the strong characterizations, the intriguing plot, and the single-minded resolve of these men to reach their dreams. A novel that gives readers a real feel for the frenzy and determination of the men associated with the gold rush--all in less than 250 pages.-- Susan Penny, St. Cecilia's School, Houston
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