Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Tales of the Mountain Men is a collection of writings about the first white men to intrude on the world of the Native Americans in the mountainous west. The writings are from diverse sources and are in greatly varied styles. To Mr. Underwood's credit, he did not clean up the writings, so some are written in a vernacular that is difficult for 21st century eyes to understand. But that simply makes the writing more genuine.
The culture that is portrayed is one that preceded the cowboy culture and was overwhelmingly male. The hardships and dangers that were taken for granted by the mountain men are unbelievable, but they are very real too. The portrayal of Native Americans is very negative and cruel.
I gave this book 4 stars because I found its organization difficult. The excerpts are in many cases too short and, in spite of introductory paragraphs, difficult to place. But the writings are fascinating and opened my eyes to a new society that is discussed in a realistic and unromanticized way.
If you are interested in either history of the west or early 19th century culture, this book is highly recommended.
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Tales of the Mountain Men: Seventeen Stories of Survival, Exploration, and Frontier SpiritLong the dominant icon embodying the spirit of America's frontier past, the image of the cowboy no longer stands alone as the ultimate symbol of independence and self-reliance. The great canvas of the western landscape-in art, books, film-is today shared by the figures called "Mountain Men." They were the trappers of the Rocky Mountain fur trade in the years following Lewis and Clark's Expedition of 1804-1806. With their bold journeys peaking, during the period of 1830-1840, they were the first white men to enter the vast wilderness reaches of the Rockies in search of beaver "plews," as the skins were called. They feasted on the abundant buffalo, elk and other game, while living the ultimate free-spirited wilderness life. Often they paid the ultimate price for their ventures under the arrows, tomahawks, and knives of those native Americans whose lands they had entered.Tales of the Mountain Men, presents in one book many of the most engaging and revealing portraits of mountain men ever written. Ranging from nonfiction classics like Bernard DeVoto's Across the Wide Missouri through fiction from such acclaimed novels as A. B. Guthrie Jr.'s The Big Sky, this collection is destined to be well appreciated by the huge and dedicated audience fascinated by mountain man lore and legend. These readers include many who today participate in reenactments of the mountain man "Rendezvous," with colorful costumes and competitions of traditional skills with authentic guns, knives, and tools.No book exists today with such a diverse and engaging collection of mountain man literature. For an already-large and still-growing audience, Tales of the Mountain Men will be a valued extension of their interest in the mountain man as a compelling and uniquely American figure.
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