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New Found Land: Lewis and Clark's Voyage of Discovery
by
Allan Wolf
"This amazing work presents the adventure of Lewis and Clark through the eyes of its participants." — SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL (starred review)
In powerful, lyrical language, here is the journey of Lewis and Clark told by themselves and their diverse crew — from a one-eyed French-Indian fiddler to Clark’s African-American slave; from Sacagawea to Lewis’s Newfoundland dog, a "...more
In powerful, lyrical language, here is the journey of Lewis and Clark told by themselves and their diverse crew — from a one-eyed French-Indian fiddler to Clark’s African-American slave; from Sacagawea to Lewis’s Newfoundland dog, a "...more
Paperback, 512 pages
Published
September 11th 2007
by Candlewick
(first published August 19th 2004)
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330)
This was a really interesting idea for a novel: it documents the famous journey of Lewis and Clarke through both verse and prose. Starting with Sacagawea, the various people on the voyage take turns narrating the story for a page or two. They include Lewis, Clark, a talkative kid, a slave, a drunkard, and a French Indian fiddler with one eye. There is also a Newfoundland dog named Oolum with a haunting narrative who was bought by Lewis for twenty dollars. I thought it was interesting that Wolf c...more
This book was a surprise to me. Just looking at the cover, the title, and the thickness, I was anticipating a painful, boring book. I was pleased to find that I was wrong. I loved the approach that this book took to teach history to young adults. The character development was done extremely well. The discourses given by each character was separated and was in a very distinct and unique style. A lot of the poetry was truly beautiful. Personally, I enjoyed Pierre's parts the most. I loved how he d...more
May 30, 2012
Drew Nevitt
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
teens, history buffs
Shelves:
young-adult-lit
I've always been a little interested in the Lewis and Clark trek, so I was excited to read this one. It should've have surprised me that it started out and continued to be very slow, as it is a journey log. The events took two years for the figures to make, and mostly the highlights of those were put into the book. It's not so much about the journey and the geography crossed but the personal and characteral journey made. It's about maturity and expansion, just as the goal of the United States wa...more
Dec 08, 2010
Chris Murray
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
historical-fiction,
verse
Wolf, Allan. New Found Land (2004)
New Found Land is an epic novel in free verse chronicling the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804 to the west coast and back. It is more than just a historical fiction adventure book. The author uses 14 different characters to tell the story, each from his own perspective in somewhat of a diary/journal format. Using this first person narrative really allows the reader to become personally connected to the story. Lewis’s pet dog, Seaman, is the narrator who pulls...more
New Found Land is an epic novel in free verse chronicling the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804 to the west coast and back. It is more than just a historical fiction adventure book. The author uses 14 different characters to tell the story, each from his own perspective in somewhat of a diary/journal format. Using this first person narrative really allows the reader to become personally connected to the story. Lewis’s pet dog, Seaman, is the narrator who pulls...more
I thought this book was amazing! It is told from the point of view of twelve different members of the Corps of Discovery, plus Capt. Lewis's newfoundland dog. While each of the human members of the expedition speaks in a sort of free verse poetry, the dog's point of view is written in regular prose. I thought this format was very accessible and refreshing to me.
While Wolf admits to taking many liberties with the character of each historical personage in this book, he gives each character a dist...more
While Wolf admits to taking many liberties with the character of each historical personage in this book, he gives each character a dist...more
May 30, 2012
Chloe Sanders
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
eng-356-5-8-2012
I had a hard time getting into this book. I thought there were too many characters, too much confusion. Then some of the characters were annoying to me. After a while though, I started to get into the story and actually interested in the characters. I found myself favoring some of the "lesser" characters over Lewis and Clark. The beginning was slow, I will add that. I thought the personal journey each narrator took was very interesting. Everyone was dealing with their own issues and questions. I...more
Finished this book just in time for class today woot! But anyways, the book was not terrible like I thought it would be. I actually kind of enjoyed some parts. It was slow going because there were a lot of parts that were boring. Also the book was enormous. However it was very educational and I really learned a lot about the Lewis and Clark expedition. I'm guessing some of the entries were in poetry, but it really did not feel like poetry at all. All in all, not a terrible book but not amazing e...more
Jun 13, 2012
Vera Chen
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
eng-356-books,
young-adult-books
I really liked this book, even though it was hard for me to read at times. There were times where i wanted to read the journal entries for just one person all the way through instead of jumping from person to person even though that made it chronologically correct. I have never read or heard about Lewis and Clark and their adventures through the Indian territory. So for me this was interesting. I have always been interested in Native Americans, and their stories and customs. So for me, this was...more
Well, I made it through the journey. I have to say, this wasn't my favorite book, which is mostly because I wasn't ever really able to "get into it." This dilemma may have been, in part, a result of my busy schedule which prevented be from being able to read large chunks in single sittings.
While I probably won't read it again, I think that it was still an interesting read because it required a lot of research on the part of its author, and it didn't whitewash the characters as much as some of th...more
While I probably won't read it again, I think that it was still an interesting read because it required a lot of research on the part of its author, and it didn't whitewash the characters as much as some of th...more
This was a lot of fun to read. I studied the story of Lewis in Clark in school and even lived in St. Louis for a time and I never enjoyed the history of these great explores and those that traveled with them so much. It was awesome to get the story from so many different perspectives and develop so many different relationships that when the book was over it was sad to say goodbye to them all. This book also made poetry fun for me and opened my eyes to how great poetry can be used to tell an amaz...more
Jun 07, 2012
Jessica Phillipy
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
eng356,
books-9-16
I really enjoyed this book and learning more about Lewis and Clark and actually can say that I learned some things about what I thought I knew that corrected my false ideas. I loved the different poem styles and the unique voices of all the characters. I think it was amazing how the poem speeds and language and sounds really fit to the circumstances and the person talking. Also, being narrated mostly by a dog added a unique perspective and insight into every character and situation. I really lik...more
Personally I thought that this book was a little hard to get into, but the more I read the more I appreciated it. I am a history minor, so when I really reflect on the overall value of the book, it actually held quite a bit. I found several topics that were discussed in the book to hold that value some of which were the dymanic characters always changing and finding out who they are, the issue of slavery and the value that slaves hold in different views and the relationship between the Indians w...more
Jun 13, 2012
Aubrey Smith
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
young-adult-literature
This is not my favorite book ever but it was actually a lot more interesting than I thought it was going to be. It was really hard for me to get into and I was a little bit confused by all the characters at first, but after I read for a while I really got to know each character's voice and I looked forward to hearing from certain characters. I think this book would be a great teaching tool to teach students about the journey of Lewis and Clark. To me, it is way more interesting than reading a te...more
This book was a surprise. I am from Idaho and the journey of Lewis and Clark has been basically shoved down my throat since 4th grade. New Found Land was a good opportunity for me to see Lewis and Clark as real human beings. They were brought alive for me. I had never thought about how much work it was to journey as far as they did. When I finished it I thought it was pretty good. It was definitely not something I would have read on my own, but I didn't regret the time I spent with it. As I got...more
While I found this book entertaining, I would not read it again because while it is historical fiction, it did not create a strong connection with me. I prefer fantasy novels above all other genres and I prefer stories with strong female heroines as the protagonist.
I liked that the author gives me multiple perspectives on the event by switching between the accounts of each member of the company. I loved watching the styles and wording change with each character. The Newfoundland, Oolum, is the...more
I liked that the author gives me multiple perspectives on the event by switching between the accounts of each member of the company. I loved watching the styles and wording change with each character. The Newfoundland, Oolum, is the...more
May 29, 2012
David Schultz
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
young-adult-lit
An amazing story that tells the tale of the voyage of Lewis and Clark. the story contains the viewpoints of several different people who were part of the voyage that went to the pacific ocean. it is an inspiring tale of discovery and adventure.
violence: 8
the story depicts many disciplinary actions, wiping and other such actions. there are also some other actions that are taken in order to do this. Some men are shot and there are many instances of killing animals just to examine them. the dog in...more
violence: 8
the story depicts many disciplinary actions, wiping and other such actions. there are also some other actions that are taken in order to do this. Some men are shot and there are many instances of killing animals just to examine them. the dog in...more
Historically accurate and interesting. Wolf obviously did his research well and masterfully brought these historical figures to light. It was a long journey to the Pacific (and a long read) but I wish Wolf would have spent a bit more time going over what happened to their company on the return journey and after returning back to the "civilized" world. I remember being dissatisfied with how quickly it ended, especially considering how long it took to get to that point. If he had spent less time w...more
Jan 25, 2009
Jaemi
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
ya-fiction,
historical-fiction
The best review I could write for this book would be one that just said "Read it."
Not a light, or overly quick read, I found this book to be rather ingenious. This is a great look into the history of our nation, through many varied sets of eyes, and it would make a wonderful addition to any English or History class, in my opinion. Told in poems, letters, and journal entries, you're not going to find an account of the Lewis & Clark expedition like it. And to tell the truth, I think I learned...more
Not a light, or overly quick read, I found this book to be rather ingenious. This is a great look into the history of our nation, through many varied sets of eyes, and it would make a wonderful addition to any English or History class, in my opinion. Told in poems, letters, and journal entries, you're not going to find an account of the Lewis & Clark expedition like it. And to tell the truth, I think I learned...more
This book was very well done, and I had a hard time rating it between three and four stars. In the end I decided on three because, although the book was very good, it wasn't always super engaging for me as a reader and at times I found it a tedious process to keep reading. That being said however, I can see that this would be a fantastic teaching resource for teachers and I thought the book overall was cleverly formatted and presented a wonderful look at this important event in history. I will a...more
Okay, so I was very skeptical about reading this book at first. First it's about Lewis and Clark, second it's a long book about Lewis and Clark. I personally just thought it was going to be a teeth pulling experience; however, I was pleasantly surprised. At first the point of view of the Dog Oolum weirded me out, but it was actually a very cleaver way to describe scenes or events, so the other characters could stay in their characters. This book was very interesting and I loved the way it was wr...more
Jun 13, 2012
Cory Hernandez
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
ya-lit-eng-356
New Found Land takes the point-of-view from different characters that go on the famous adeventur out West with Lewis and Clark. To tell you the truth, I had a hard time getting through the book because I thought it was quite boring. However, as I read other people's reviews, I can see why a lot of people give it four and five stars. The book is well done and is something completely different that most stories about this trek. Most of them are either from a third person point of view or they are...more
May 24, 2012
Jana Merrill
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
young-adult-lit-all-25
This book was actually better than I thought it would be! Not going to lie, I was annoyed with it in the beginning but it did get better. I was annoyed because it was long and I had to read it in two days, and it kept on switching characters, so at first it was hard to keep track of them but the. As the novel progressed each character became more distinct and I grew to love each character in a different way.
Ratings:
Violence: 3- there are some violent parts in the book, there are fights between t...more
Ratings:
Violence: 3- there are some violent parts in the book, there are fights between t...more
May 29, 2012
Cami Beath
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
young-adult-lit-2o12
New Found Land
By Allan Wolf
This book looks like it belongs in my mom’s house. My little brothers would be all over this! For younger boys who love to read, this would be their favorite book! I really enjoyed it myself. I am a big fan of the scenes with rhythm (cutting trees, rowing) and real musical quality. It definitely isn’t my first choice for an enjoyable read, but I did like it a lot. I am going to hold on to it to share with all the eleven yr old boys I might meet.
Violence: Not too bad
Sex...more
By Allan Wolf
This book looks like it belongs in my mom’s house. My little brothers would be all over this! For younger boys who love to read, this would be their favorite book! I really enjoyed it myself. I am a big fan of the scenes with rhythm (cutting trees, rowing) and real musical quality. It definitely isn’t my first choice for an enjoyable read, but I did like it a lot. I am going to hold on to it to share with all the eleven yr old boys I might meet.
Violence: Not too bad
Sex...more
I am a reader. I love to read and I will gladly read pretty much anything. Yet, I started reading this around 4PM, getting plenty of sleep thus far in the semester, and I fell asleep reading this book. So, if I'm not super into it, maybe young adults won't be either. Honestly, I can't picture many teens have the urge to pick up this book and read it unless it was assigned. The dog seems to give the boring/descriptive details of the trip, which seems really odd, but maybe Wolf did that so the hum...more
I was raised in St. Louis, Missouri and I grew up hearing all about Lewis and Clark and going to museums about them and their expiditions, but honestly I think I appreciated this book more than anything else. I loved how the poety really brings you into the story and you feel like you really get to know the characters. It wasn't the easiest read, but I really enjoyed it.
Ratings:
Violence: 2-There were some violent scenes with the Indians
Language: 1-Nothing really strong
Sex: 0-No
Alcohol/Drugs: 3-A...more
Ratings:
Violence: 2-There were some violent scenes with the Indians
Language: 1-Nothing really strong
Sex: 0-No
Alcohol/Drugs: 3-A...more
This is ostensibly a "young adult" book, but I think grown ups will enjoy it just as much. Wolf gives us 14 characters' perspectives in this book (including the Newfoundland's) that chronicles Lewis and Clark's exploration of the Northwest Passage. Each character is distinct and the poetry/verse is excellent. Surprisingly easy to read for such a large book of verse, the rhythm of the verse in places captures the river, the rowing/work on board ship, the abruptness of an Indian attack, the intera...more
This book was “eh”. I was not thrilled about having to read it in the first place, so I went into the book with a negative attitude. It was a huge book, but it was written well. All the characters got a tad confusing for me. I think that this is a pretty cool book for kids to read about The Lewis and Clark Expedition, but if I would’ve had to read it in high school-I wouldn’t have.
WARNINGS
Sex-Slight mention of sex-nothing to freight about.
Alcohol-They drink whisky.
Violence: Moderate, but help of...more
WARNINGS
Sex-Slight mention of sex-nothing to freight about.
Alcohol-They drink whisky.
Violence: Moderate, but help of...more
A good look into the various viewpoints of the Corps Discovery members as they searched for a Northwest Passage. I rather liked listening to the banter between the Field brothers. They added a bit of humor to the journey. For me, it was rather monotonous, and I struggled to get excited to read it. By the end, after they made it to the Pacific, I was excited for them and just wanted to see how their lives turned out upon returning home.
At the end the author includes some historical notes that fu...more
At the end the author includes some historical notes that fu...more
This book was written in a way that is very easy to read. It was written from a variety of perspectives so you got to know lots of characters really well. It's a really good book to read if you are interested in history but not in reading from a history book. Although it's not one hundred percent factual, neither is a history book. If you keep in mind that some of it is fictionalized, it is a really good book, and it does have a lot of "facts" in it.
Language- minimal.
Violence- some.
Alcohol- some...more
Language- minimal.
Violence- some.
Alcohol- some...more
I thought it was good. It gave a whole new life on the whole journey that Lewis and Clark made across the country to the Pacific Ocean. I think it could be used greatly in a history class because it tells their point of view of the journey in detail, not just in a paragraph or two in a history book.
Violence: there are some conflicts with the Indians that lead to violence and killing
Language: There was a slight bit, but none that I can point out that was really really bad
Sex: Nope. None.
Drugs: No...more
Violence: there are some conflicts with the Indians that lead to violence and killing
Language: There was a slight bit, but none that I can point out that was really really bad
Sex: Nope. None.
Drugs: No...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| You'll love this ...: June's Group Themed Read - New Found Land | 6 | 13 | Jul 02, 2012 09:04am | |
| Has anyone read it? | 1 | 4 | Mar 13, 2012 04:42pm |
Allan Wolf: educator-writer-musician extraordinaire. He has literally hundreds of poems committed to memory. He is a veteran traveler through all the diverse worlds of poetry--from poetry slams to public schools, salons to saloons. He turns classic poetry into acoustic tunes as the drummer for The Dead Poets band. He put the Oh! in poetry as the educational director for national touring company Po...more
More about Allan Wolf...
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Jan 16, 2010 07:16am