Those Tremendous Mountains: The Story of the Lewis & Clark Expedition

by Meriwether Lewis

In 1804 Lewis and Clark set off to explore the new lands of the Louisiana Purchase. They were acting as the eyes and ears of President Thomas Jefferson, who had an insatiable curiosity about what lay between the Mississippi and the Pacific. One contingency for which they were not prepared was the awesome geography of the Rocky Mountains. Including excerpts from Lewis and Clark's journals and putting their scientific achievements in context, David Hawke presents a riveting story of this dramatic journey.

Genres: History, American History, Travel, Nonfiction

273 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

About the author

Meriwether Lewis was an American explorer, soldier, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition also known as the Corps of Discovery, with William Clark, whose mission was to explore the territory of the Louisiana Purchase.

Reviews

[David Christensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this 260 page 1980 book because I’ll be traveling out to Fort Clatsop / Camp Disappointment and the Lewis and Clark National Park along the Columbia River on the Pacific Coast in three weeks and I wanted to refresh my understanding of their 3 year expedition, especially the tail of how they crossed over the Rockies and down the Columbia, spent the winter on the coast, then trekked back East over that treacherous route. I have previously read Undaunted Courage by Stephen Ambrose and seen many great documentaries on them (including a great one in St. Louis). I plan to look at a couple more books, maps and illustrations to get a good idea before I travel out to Oregon and Washington to see some these sites first hand. I look forward to seeing where history actually took place.

[Megan Baxter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fairly light history of the Lewis and Clark expedition, very narrative in nature, and relying heavily on direct quotes from journals, which is interesting, but I don't always find that he gives good context. When several pages at a time are the journals, why not just have the journals?

And wow, gender stereotypes. When writing that it is recorded several times that Sacajawea cooked a meal, he writes something like "it is hard not assume that she just loved fussing about with the cooking." Uh-huh. Nice leap.

At any rate, this one isn't for historians. It's light popular history, a quick read, and that's about it.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was very dry and a little difficult to get through at times. It took me awhile, but I persevered and made it through. Glad I did. Although the writing was bland, the actual story of Lewis & Clark is incredible. I learned quite a bit about these two amazing men and their journey to the Pacific Ocean. I would like to read another book about their journey, maybe one that goes into the natural history a bit more.

[Shane Westfall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very readable, but very brief. Hawke presents a good overview of the journey, but lacks a lot of substance. Excellent for the casual reader, but not enough meat there for one actually interested in history.

[Jenn Nolen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really brought history alive! Lots of details, but still readable.