The Man From The Creeks

by Robert Kroetsch

Book by Kroetsh, Robert

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Novels, Literature

307 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Robert Kroetsch was a Canadian novelist, poet, and non-fiction writer. He taught for many years at the University of Manitoba. Kroetsch spent multiple years in Vancouver, British Columbia before returning to Winnipeg where he continued to write. In 2004 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Reviews

[DelicateMonster]

I loved the story, and Kroetsch's writing style. Just writing a quick review to say I don't know why someone said the characters were idiots - Lou is constantly portrayed as shrewd and clever, benignly manipulative. Perhaps some miscommunications romantically, but that's basic human nature and in this case fleshed out all the characters and drove the plot. The other main character, Peek, is a young teen who grows up fast, takes clever risks, and is quite emotionally intelligent. So, not idiots, particularly when they're immersed in the absolutely BONKERS gold rush, dealing with thousands of unprecedented situations simultaneously. Good read, my first Kroetsch - will look for more from the author.

[Daniel]

5 minutes later:
A novel based on and acting as a prequel to the poem 'The Shooting of Dan McGrew'

At times fun, and it made me think about some aspects of that time period ive never really considered but...

Well for a stand alone story its not very good. And the whole story is driven by two characters who consistently make really stupid decisions followed by them being too stubborn and arrogant to admit they might have been wrong.

Stories that only exist because the characters are idiots arent really my style.

[Julius]

Vom Klappentext: "Klondike River 1897: Fluß des Goldes, der Hoffnung und des Todas. Drei Reisende machen sich auf die gefährliche Suche nach schnellem Reichtum und großen Gefühlen, nach legendären Claims und Dangerous Dans Saloon. Sie sind umringt von Räubern und Mördern und falschen Freunden, denn sie haben fässerweise Whiskey im Gepäck, der ihnen helfen soll, in Dawson City ein neues Leben zu beginnen."

[Rebecca Nagrodski]

One of my absolute favourite books

[Ron]

This was a very interesting look at how it must have been during the Klondike gold rush. Very well written fictional account if that period.

[Linnea]

It took me a good long time before I could become part of this book's journey North--perhaps reflective itself of the long, toiling movement of Ben, Lou, and Peek to the Klondike. How, however, could I not belong to it in some form or another with closing lines such as these, "We suffer and die, we are told. But we also suffer and live. . . . Even a long life is short. We must learn to hold each other."

This is the type of book one should finish reading on Valentine's Day, to remind oneself that seeking love is only a half-lived out pursuit when the eventual acquisition hasn't required grinding dirt and grit into fingernails and bedding bullets in hearts. To remind oneself that sometimes the roses are hand-made of red crêpe paper, and of unspoken guilt-- for one has succumbed, and another has survived.

Put up with the stinted, one-breath prose for the first half of the book. It pays off, and you'll find that every moment you've wanted to slap a character is soon replaced by a second moment in which you want that hand, instead, to feel the features now, washed out and lost in the Yukon floods of 1899. You too will become a partner, looking for gold, looking for solace, looking for rest somewhere on the other side of the permafrost past.

[Tiffany Lillie]

Great read. I loved the whimsy of the book being based upon the poem by Robert Service ("The Shooting of Dan McGrew"). Kroetsch was able to convincingly portray a historically-accurate experience of the time during the Gold Rush, while all the time building up to a recreation of the scene from the poem. I found the read very satisfying, enlightening, and enjoyable.

[Savannah]

Wish the less virtuous parts of this book had been omitted, as the story was well told and the history was fascinating. Good read, but will not read it again.

[Gord Higginson]

Not as good as his earlier funnier stuff. This one is too realistic, but still a beezer of a tale.

[Dr JKL]

Thoroughly enjoyable. I read this alongside Robert Service's _Songs of a Sourdough_, which contains the poem on which the book is based ("The Shooting of Dan MacGrew").

[Debbie ☕️]

This was not a bad book, just not somewhere I wanted to be. (gold rush) I gave it my best but just wasn't for me.

[Robert Parsons]

Excellent tale set in the Gold Rush, featuring the characters from a Robert Service poem. Funny, touching, it is a rollicking tale!

[Leonel Richard]

One of the funniest books I have had the pleasure to read.