Pilgrims of the Wild

by Grey Owl

Pilgrims of the Wild is Grey Owl's autobiographical account of his transition from successful trapper to preservationist.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Travel, Memoir, Canada, Animals

Paperback

First published January 1, 1934

About the author

Grey Owl (or Wa-sha-quon-asin, from the Ojibwe wenjiganoozhiinh, meaning "great horned owl" or "great grey owl") was the name Archibald Belaney adopted when he took on a First Nations identity as an adult. A British native, he was most notable as an author and one of the "most effective apostles of the wilderness". While his writings showed his deep knowledge and concern about the environment, Belaney's account of his origins as "Grey Owl" was mostly fictional. The consequences of the revelation were dramatic. Publishers immediately ceased producing his books under the name Grey Owl. In some cases his books were withdrawn from publication.
(from wikipedia)

Reviews

[Milica Cvetković - Cvećka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Divna knjiga, dirljiva, emotivna i veoma poučna. Opisuje transformaciju jednog čoveka iz lovca na dabrove u njihovog najvećeg zaštitnika, u surovoj divljini severne Kanade. Njegovo angažovanje na zaštiti prirode i divljeg sveta uopšte imalo je velikog uticaja na podizanje svesti o važnosti očuvanja prirodnih bogatstava i sprečilo gotovo sigurno istrebljenje dabrova koje su, zbog visoke cene krzna, lovili u tolikoj meri da su postali ugrožena vrsta. Zahvaljujući odluci da o tome piše, njegov uticaj se proširio i van granica Kanade, pogotovo u Engleskoj. Snimljeno je i nekoliko kratkih dokumentarnih filmova u kojima se pojavljuju on i njegova supruga, zajedno sa svojim pripitomljenim dabrovima. Ubaciću linkove, vredi pogledati.
Beaver people: https://www.nfb.ca/film/beaver_people/
Beaver family: https://www.nfb.ca/film/beaver_family/
Iako i sam pisac navodi da ne poseduje neki literarni kvalitet, odličan je pripovedač i uspeva da dočara život Indijanaca koji je u skladu sa prirodom, kao i da probudi takve emocije da mi je veći deo knjige stajala knedla u grlu. Vredi pročitati.

[Ed Stoddard · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the first and most influential;"predendians": an Englishmen who falsely claimed he was half Native Canadian. Grey Owl was also a fur trapper turned bunny hugger, blazing new ground as a popular writer a century ago bemoaning North America's vanishing wilderness. The historical currents that brought him to this juncture in the river of his life flowed into the modern conservation movement. This makes his thinking and writing - including the caricature of the "Noble Indian" - an important window into the history of conservation. Before the racist Joyce Adamson and her lion cub named Elsa, Grey Owl the fake aboriginal had his beaver companions "Jelly Roll", "Rawhide" and others.
"All Northern people love the pine trees," he writes. "Now, as we followed the receding waves of this vanishing frontier further and further North to where pine no longer grew, we found them to be rare, and missed them."

[Roxanne Bedard-Saucier · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5*

[Brian Burhoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lifetime ago, I guess, since I read the school library editions of Grey Owl's books and asked for my own copies for Christmas. More than an essential guide to our Wilderness and its creatures, Archie Grey Owl became a boyhood hero, along with writers like Sir Charles G D Roberts (also met in the library) and Edgar Rice Burroughs.

[Ivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful story about man and nature. Sometimes, the best way to understand nature and our place in this world is to use some Native American experience.

[Ria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Such mixed feelings on this book, I absolutely adored all the natural history and information on the Native American Indian lifestyle but the necessary fur trapping vital to their survival was at times VERY hard to read through.
I appreciate its all part of their culture and heritage and that to a certain extent Grey Owl the author tried in his small way to make amends with conservation of the beaver but being very sensitive I found the graphically, brutal slaughter of the wildlife absolutely disgusting and actually considered skipping parts.
It really was a fascinating read but for me I found elements of it hard to take so marking it down just on the animal cruelty side of things alone.

[Ewa Koziarska · Rating 4 out of 5]

Książka jest w moim domu od wielu lat, i tak sobie leżała nieczytana na półce, bo wydawało mi się, że to będzie jakaś nuda. A tu niespodzianka :) Fakt, w książce prawie w ogóle nie ma dialogów, ale mimo to wciąga. Jest to właściwie autobiografia autora, który z myśliwego przekształca się w obrońcę zwierząt, a w szczególności bobrów. Poznajemy też zwyczaje bobrów, ich miłość i przywiązanie do człowieka. Generalnie bardzo polecam :)
Ocena 4,5

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a fraud who wasn't really First Nations at all, Archie from England still can write a heck of a prose paragraph about pine trees. And hey, he helped the beavers. This is a nonfiction book accounting the nonfiction life of a fictional person. Whatever. For all Belaney's talk about how he's no writer, when it comes to it, he's not so bad.

[Charlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possibly one of the best books I have ever read for those of us in love with Northern Ontario.

[Stephanie Gregg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully told journey of self discovery... I plan to read more books by Grey Owl

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although throughout the story Grey Owl constantly discusses his poor writing he is in fact a marvellous story teller. The story of man and beaver is so unique and at many times feels unbelievable.

The physical challenges that are overcome make Grey Owl a titan. His ability to endure the harsh north is inspiring. He talks about how the past days of trapping are over and golden age of that time are done. Interestingly it feels his time of exploration are also part of another golden era, but ales you realize that even now we are living in another golden age of which future generations will be jealous of.

[Leslie Patten · Rating 5 out of 5]

From trapper to conservationist, the story of Grey Owl is captivating. Written in the 30's, Grey Owl lived in Canada and along with his Indian wife, adopted a pair of beaver kits. These beavers completely changed his outlook on wildlife. His description of the beaver antics are priceless. He was a true woodsman, surviving circumstances that few of us today could. A must read for all conservationists!

[Adelina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so happy that read this book. At first it was a bit hard to get in to the writing, but as the writer Grey Owl says himself that he is not a writer and he has never written something before.

Everybody should read this little great book. It tells a journey of a man who loves nature and his freedom.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book!!! It was a little hard to get the hang of his writing at first but once I got into it I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend it.

[Paweł]

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