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Running West
An extraordinary tale of adventure, based on real people and actual historical events. William Stewart is unjustly banished from his Scottish homeland and indentured as a clerk to Canada's Hudson Bay Company. Thana is a Canadian Indian girl whose peaceful life has been shattered when a rival tribe massacres her family and enslaves her. The two meet and undertake an unprecedented trek into uncharted wilderness to search for gold.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
1 pages, Paperback
First published November 4, 1989
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 17, 2012
One of Houston's more entertaining books and recommended for readers interested in early Canadian history.
The following copied and pasted review is a spoiler.
"KIRKUS REVIEW
"By the author of Eagle Song (1983) and other tales of the Canadian North, a vigorous, supple, altogether involving wilderness adventure: a retelling of a true story about a young Scots Highlander who, in 1714, was forced to serve in a Hudson Bay Company's trading settlement in America. He will eventually live, travel with, and love the ""Copper Woman"" of the DÉnÉ Nation, who here shares the narration.
"Young William Stewart, exiled from the Highlands because of an unwise feat of arms, and indentured to the Hudson Bay Company because of another nasty trick of fate, arrives with the company to a fort west of Hudson Bay. Then, thanks to a treaty, a scraggly group of sea-weakened British take over the rotting ""York Factory"" fort from the celebrating French; and Stewart, who'd been educated with a laird's son, acts as clerk for the governor. Meanwhile, the DÉnÉ woman Thanadelthur has survived a massacre of her people, only to be tormented by a crazed Wood Cat hunter, and Finally to escape. The half-dead Thana is brought into camp by the Britishers' Cree allies.
"The friendship of Thana and William in the fort (the ""house of spears"") grows with the knowledge of each other's language and ripens to love. There follows a long catastrophe-wracked trek to locate the ""yellow pebbles"" in DÉnÉ territory (a lust for gold fueled by the governor but shared by William); feasts, famines, feuds, and near separation (Thana's rival is the English ship--long-awaited--at anchor) before union in death.
"Houston's action narrative is bright, lively, and uncluttered by obtrusive research, and his delightful illustrations reflect his buoyant interest in the period and a firm knowledge. In all: a fine, sturdy, fresh-air period adventure. (Old-timers who fondly remember the Northwest novels of Kenneth Roberts might especially like this.) A possible YA.
The following copied and pasted review is a spoiler.
"KIRKUS REVIEW
"By the author of Eagle Song (1983) and other tales of the Canadian North, a vigorous, supple, altogether involving wilderness adventure: a retelling of a true story about a young Scots Highlander who, in 1714, was forced to serve in a Hudson Bay Company's trading settlement in America. He will eventually live, travel with, and love the ""Copper Woman"" of the DÉnÉ Nation, who here shares the narration.
"Young William Stewart, exiled from the Highlands because of an unwise feat of arms, and indentured to the Hudson Bay Company because of another nasty trick of fate, arrives with the company to a fort west of Hudson Bay. Then, thanks to a treaty, a scraggly group of sea-weakened British take over the rotting ""York Factory"" fort from the celebrating French; and Stewart, who'd been educated with a laird's son, acts as clerk for the governor. Meanwhile, the DÉnÉ woman Thanadelthur has survived a massacre of her people, only to be tormented by a crazed Wood Cat hunter, and Finally to escape. The half-dead Thana is brought into camp by the Britishers' Cree allies.
"The friendship of Thana and William in the fort (the ""house of spears"") grows with the knowledge of each other's language and ripens to love. There follows a long catastrophe-wracked trek to locate the ""yellow pebbles"" in DÉnÉ territory (a lust for gold fueled by the governor but shared by William); feasts, famines, feuds, and near separation (Thana's rival is the English ship--long-awaited--at anchor) before union in death.
"Houston's action narrative is bright, lively, and uncluttered by obtrusive research, and his delightful illustrations reflect his buoyant interest in the period and a firm knowledge. In all: a fine, sturdy, fresh-air period adventure. (Old-timers who fondly remember the Northwest novels of Kenneth Roberts might especially like this.) A possible YA.
October 5, 2021
Based on a true story, with a sad ending.
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January 18, 2017I can understand that others might try this book and say ho hum but because I'm interested in the settlement of the Canadian west and North and the stories of our natives I found this book gripping.
It is a love story about a young Scottish lad who comes to York Factory as an employee for the Hudson's Bay Company. He meets a Dene native woman who has escaped from her captor after being stolen and ravaged from her home tribe and finally near death wanders into the fort. It's the mid 1700's and life is savage and one wonders why the fort exists. The answer is the same as drives men to extremes today; religion and gold. The two young people become a couple and are sent on an expedition in search of her homeland to verify her stories of finding precious metals. they start out with thirty Cree natives and plenty of supplies and dogs but by the end of their journey they are alone with one teenage boy. Alive, thanks to her knowledge of how to survive in the frozen artic. They return to the fort as the woman is pregnant, the supply ship from England comes in and she's convinced her man will take off but he doesn't because he loves her. Alas, and I didn't see this coming, she dies in childbirth. The lover wanders off into the open tundra and dies. Only then at the end of the book do I see it's a true story. James Houston has written several books about his twelve year stay in the artic and each one of them includes artistic references and drawings because he is an artist. He initiated the BAker Lake Arts co-operative and was responsible for it's connection the the Canadian Guild of Crafts which marketed the art pieces. A fine legacy.
It is a love story about a young Scottish lad who comes to York Factory as an employee for the Hudson's Bay Company. He meets a Dene native woman who has escaped from her captor after being stolen and ravaged from her home tribe and finally near death wanders into the fort. It's the mid 1700's and life is savage and one wonders why the fort exists. The answer is the same as drives men to extremes today; religion and gold. The two young people become a couple and are sent on an expedition in search of her homeland to verify her stories of finding precious metals. they start out with thirty Cree natives and plenty of supplies and dogs but by the end of their journey they are alone with one teenage boy. Alive, thanks to her knowledge of how to survive in the frozen artic. They return to the fort as the woman is pregnant, the supply ship from England comes in and she's convinced her man will take off but he doesn't because he loves her. Alas, and I didn't see this coming, she dies in childbirth. The lover wanders off into the open tundra and dies. Only then at the end of the book do I see it's a true story. James Houston has written several books about his twelve year stay in the artic and each one of them includes artistic references and drawings because he is an artist. He initiated the BAker Lake Arts co-operative and was responsible for it's connection the the Canadian Guild of Crafts which marketed the art pieces. A fine legacy.
June 14, 2020
This book was so far outside my comfort zone, but I really enjoyed it! There's plenty of adventure and suspense. As I was nearing the end, things started getting all squishy and I started to doubt my choice to read this. Houston kept this from being turned into nothing but a passionate romance, however, and I'm glad I continued reading. Houston takes his time to tell a beautiful and haunting story from the depths of history.
January 15, 2022
Powerful historical fiction based on records from the Hudson's Bay Company Archives, with assistance from Shirlee Smith, who was instrumental in bringing the archives from London to Winnipeg.
November 8, 2016
What i loved about this novel is the adventure. They went on a long journey and found a lot of stuff about the west. The main character was kicked out from his scottish homeland and moved to canada, He knew he wanted to do something more than just to be a clerk. He met a woman who went to the north and fell in love with her. I also liked that the girl had a past and was hurt so they both helped each other to get through the things that did hurt them. The main character helped the lady because she was and enslaved
I liked that he was helping her to get away and that is why i liked the title of the book running west because when they were free they ran west or in other meaning they were just simply running away.
I liked that he was helping her to get away and that is why i liked the title of the book running west because when they were free they ran west or in other meaning they were just simply running away.
February 24, 2016
Editorial Review:
Unjustly banished from Scotland, William Stewart and Thana, a beautiful Dene Indian girl, journey deep into the heart of the unexplored sub-Arctic wilderness, in a story of love and survival set in eighteenth-century Canada.
Unjustly banished from Scotland, William Stewart and Thana, a beautiful Dene Indian girl, journey deep into the heart of the unexplored sub-Arctic wilderness, in a story of love and survival set in eighteenth-century Canada.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews