Canoes: A Natural History in North America

by Mark Neuzil, Norman Sims

Ancient records of canoes are found from the Pacific Northwest to the coast of Maine, in Minnesota and Mexico, in the Southeast and across the Caribbean. And if a native of those distant times might encounter a canoe of our day—whether birch bark or dugout or a modern marvel made of carbon fiber—its silhouette would be instantly recognizable. This is the story of that singular American artifact, so little changed over of canoes, old and new, the people who made them, and the labors and adventures they shared. With features of technology, industry, art, and survival, the canoe carries us deep into the natural and cultural history of North America. In the foreword by Pulitzer Prize–winner John McPhee, we dip into the experience of canoeing, from the thrilling challenges of childhood camp expeditions to the moving reflections of long-time paddlers. The pages that follow are filled with historical photographs and artwork, authors Neuzil and Sims describe the dugout and birch bark craft from their first known appearance through the exploration of Canada by fur traders, to the recreational movements that promoted all-wood and wood-and-canvas canoes. Modern materials such as aluminum, fiberglass, and plastic expanded participation and connected canoeists with emerging environmental movements.  Finally, Canoes lets us hear the voices of past paddlers like Alexander Mackenzie, the first European to cross North America, using birch bark and dugout canoes a decade before Lewis and Clark went overland, Henry Thoreau, Eric Sevareid, Edwin Tappan Adney, and others. Their stories are a tribute to the First Peoples who, 500 or 1,000 or even 5,000 years ago, built a craft designed to such perfection that it has plied the waters fundamentally unchanged ever since. 

Genres: Nonfiction, History

336 pages, Hardcover

Published November 15, 2016

Reviews

[Max Dunn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first saw Canoes: A Natural History in North America on a display table at the MSU Library two winters ago. The topic of focus was A History and it was surrounded by the books The Clean Body: A Modern History, Strange Bright Bloom: A History of Cut Flowers, The Science of Walking: Investigations into Locomotion in the Long Nineteenth Century, and A Dark History of Sugar. 

Winslow Homer’s watercolor painting on the front cover immediately grabbed me and released a specific feeling of tranquility that only arises when I’m on or near a body of water. The sensation was similar to the rush of positive emotions and memories that unlock when you inhale a particular smell. I took a picture of the cover for future reference and bought a copy of it this February.

Beginning with dugout canoes of the West Indies and ending with synthetic canoes of the United States, the authors elegantly describe how Native American populations, fur trade Voyageurs, and the rise in North American recreation drove canoe design and the creation of an industry. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the various accounts of early settlement Europeans and Natives co-existing.

Many pages contain an excerpt of a historical text, a beautiful painting, or picture of a canoe artifact, making this book a great coffee table addition.

Canoes is an all around great book and I look forward to using it as a reference for future vacations!

[MattA · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book, a beautiful-looking book. The images are phenomenal. If you are in the mood for a book that is a delight to hold and leaf through, this is it. The quintessential coffee table book.

The layout is mostly good. My only quibble is with the multi-page sidebars which don't have their own layout style (e.g., different font or shading) and so are annoyingly similar to the regular text. In some cases this causes the regular text to seemingly stop in mid-sentence where a sidebar begins.

The chapter organization is good. Most chapters are dedicated to a specific type of canoe construction, from dugouts, to birch bark, to wood strip, to canvas, to synthetic materials. Other chapters focus on the fur trade, the human-powered movement, and great canoe trips through history.

The text itself is uninspiring. The authors have a hard time following a narrative line. Certain paragraphs seem to have been just dropped into the text with no relation to what came before or after. Sometimes it seems as if they can't decide between giving a quick overview of canoe history and doing a deep dive, so the pacing is irregular. In one case there is a significant mistake in a photo caption, a photo of Belle Isle in Detroit with which I am familiar, which seems to indicate that the U.S. and Canada are separated by a 20-foot-wide canal. Catching such an error makes one start to doubt the veracity of the rest of the text. In short, the book would have benefitted from more thorough editing.

But I don't want to be overly-critical. If you are a fan of canoes, I would call this book almost a must-have.

[BiblioBtown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this to prepare for a Canoeing trip through the Voyager Wilderness Program in Quetico Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Very relevant. Very helpful.

[Steve Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meeting and listening to the author share a bit of his detailed knowledge of canoes made it easy for me to buy the book. His biography of the canoe--a uniquely American creation--is encyclopedic. There's much to learn from this book. While some chapters move slower than others, all have a depth of knowledge obviously gained from a long association with canoes and their pathways. One doesn't need to read about canoes to gain a deep admiration for the craft, but Mark's work leads one to truly appreciate the DNA present in modern examples.

[Therese · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a life-long lover of canoes who dreams of more time on the water, I really enjoyed this book. Great canoe art (who knew!), lots of history, but maybe too much about materials, especially synthetics. Perhaps the authors should have heeded their own words: "Journeys are more important in the history of canoes than are materials." Maybe I am just the content caretaker of a very early Grumman canoe that carries lots of history and several coats of paint applied by children.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art is great, the text is good, and could have been better. Unnecessary pot shots a the aluminum canoe that is and was so egalitarian, free advertising for Wenonah, and too much fondness for the phrase "high end."

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great pictures great content

[Boo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic and encyclopedic! If you enjoy canoeing or even just the lore of canoes, this book has it all… history, stories and beautiful art and imagery.

[Lisa K · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully-illustrated book that weaves environmentalism and design and history: what could be better! Well, the writing does wobble and circle, often, but the writing is still an overall B-. And the content is just stellar; things I know (esp 1890s forward) entwined with topics I knew nothing about.
I enjoyed learning about voyageurs, fur-trade, different facets of leisure time -- and my goodness, how did I not know about "canoedling"? The latter really through me off balance: I have always know canoes to be girl- and woman-propelled; courting boats with women as finger-trailing passengers are rowboats and those punts on the Cam. In the appropriate chapters, we do meet some women paddlers and builders, but treatment of women fell a little short.

The authors trace the environmental movement throughout the 20th century, really, linking important 1960s and 70s legislation to outdoor enthusiasts who always include canoers of all levels. [insert here the West Wing Weekly's "Trump, aye, yi, yi" here, as we fear the unraveling of same]

[Jla]

64