1609

by Harald Johnson

It's September, 1609, and two worlds are about to collide. Explorer Henry Hudson doesn't know what to expect when he sails across the Atlantic in search of the elusive passage to the Indies. Neither do the native Lenape people on the island of Mannahatta when they see a "great floating bird" approach. Are these Spirits or men? A curious and independent-minded Dancing Fish is given the mission to out. Initially enthralled by these strangers, he slowly discovers their dark side and must make a difficult choice. Ambition, greed, love, and hate bind the visitors and the "savages" together in a chain of events that will change North America forever.

If you like historical fiction in the style of Ken Follett, James Michener, or Edward Rutherfurd, then you'll enjoy Harald Johnson's series of short books ("novellas") — based on true events — about the birth of New York City and the island at its center: Manhattan.

100 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 18, 2016

About the author

Harald Johnson is an author of both fiction and nonfiction, a publisher, and a lifelong swimmer—who actually swam nonstop around New York’s Manhattan island. His debut novel (NEW YORK 1609, 2018) was the first-ever to explore the birth of New York City (and Manhattan) from its earliest beginnings. He followed that with the three books of the NEANDER time-travel trilogy (2019, 2020, 2021), and then the modern suspense thriller EL NORTE (2022). THE TWILIGHTS is his sixth novel (and twelfth book).

Harald lives with his wife deep in the woods of central Virginia.

Reviews

[Winifred Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well-written, action-packed story of Henry Hudson’s exploration of the Hudson River which shows him disregarding the instructions of his Dutch financiers and struggling with a largely Dutch crew. But it’s more than that because much of it is told from the point of view of a young Indian who acts as an interpreter for him. Dancing Fish is fascinated by the Europeans, their boat, and their other remarkable inventions. He’s also drawn to the idea of exploration, yet he’s repelled by some of the things the Europeans do, and it’s this internal conflict that drives the story. That part, of course, is completely fictional, but maybe that’s why it’s the more compelling. Maybe because Johnson had to stick to the few facts we know about Hudson’s voyage, Hudson’s motivations sometimes seemed muddy. Johnson seems to want to portray him as a man who respected the indigenous people while his crew raided and murdered them. I would love to know if that portrayal of him is valid. But I enjoyed the story as it’s told. Dancing Fish is a strong character who works well as a window into the complexities of that time. The map on the cover made me think the book would be dry, but it’s rich with emotional power.

[Edward Rickford · Rating 4 out of 5]

**This review has also been posted to edwardrickford.com and Amazon**

New York has always been one of my favorite states to visit and I picked up 1609 because I thought it would be interesting to learn more about the history of the place. There’s no shortage of historical fiction set in New York but I think the vast majority is set in the 19th or 20th century and I really appreciate that Harold Johnson tried a different tack by setting his story firmly in the early 17th century. Moreover, the story is told largely from the perspective of Amerindian characters which appealed to me on a narrative level as well as a historical level.
The protagonist of the story is Dancing Fish and we learn that early on that he is no stranger to tragedy. He loses his parents when he is just a child and constantly grapples with the guilt that comes with being a lone survivor. Nonetheless, he is fortunate to be accepted by the Manahate people and cares deeply about the well-being of his adopted family.
Consequently, the arrival of Captain Hudson and his crew, on an island now known as Manhattan, piques Dancing Fish’s interest. Captain Hudson and his men speak languages none of the Manahate have ever heard of and travel in ships unlike any they have ever seen. Determined to learn more about these strange people, Dancing Fish agrees to accompany them on a journey upriver.
After all, doing so will help him learn more about the inland nations and learn more about the people who have just recently arrived in his home. What he learns distresses him greatly and he quickly realizes that Hudson and his ilk have sinister designs for his homeland. Convinced nothing can be gained by staying with Hudson, Dancing Fish abandons ship after seriously injuring one of Hudson’s crew members.
In the process, he suffers a pretty serious injury himself but I think what I found most memorable about this scene was the interaction between Hudson and Dancing Fish. Hudson is confounded that Dancing Fish would want to abandon his company and entices him to return by telling him “our world is the future.” Hudson’s appeal falls on deaf ears and Dancing Fish responds by letting him know “I see only how you look to our land, to our animals, even to us. We are only for your using. This is not the way to be brothers in peace.”
In some respects, the characters talk past each other during this exchange and I think that’s part of what makes this scene powerful. Neither character can deny the charges made, Dancing Fish understands the Manahate are too few in number to successfully oppose the Dutch East India company and Hudson understands that he is more invader than savior, but neither want to admit this truth. Ultimately, they both seem to realize that dialogue is futile so long as their world views cannot be reconciled and relations between the Manahate and the Dutch East India company become irreparably strained.
Owing to the emotional stakes of this scene, I imagine it is one that most readers will remember long after they finish the book. Having said that, I think there are some scenes that readers will remember for the wrong reason. The scene where Willow and High Limb first become intimate did not sit right with me, it made little sense from a character standpoint and validates a really awful way of thinking, and I wish the scene had been nixed since it has little importance to the larger story. For that matter, I do also wish 1609 had been a bit longer and I am glad the omnibus version combines the sequels because I think some of the sequels were too short to stand on their own. In any case, I enjoyed 1609 quite a bit and would recommend it to anyone interested in the history of European colonization of the Northeast or Amerindian history.

[Linn Browning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Final Score: 5/5
Plot: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Writing: 4.8/5

This is one of those books where I need to preface it a little. The author is a patron at my library and we struck up a conversation at the desk recently about books and reviews. When I asked if he was writing one, he told me that he'd written three and was putting out a paper omnibus edition of the series sometime in October or November. I offered to read the first one and review it for my book blog and YouTube channel. So, yeah, I have a slightly personal stake in this.

That said, Manhattan 1609 blew me away. From what Harald had said about his subject matter, I had expected an interesting story with lots of history and, because I'm skeptical of the quality of self-published books in general, a mediocre writing style.

This is not your average self-published book.

The story begins with Henry Hudson's trip across the Atlantic, exploring the explorer and his crew as they travel. It shifts then to the perspective of Dancing Fish, a native of the Lanape tribe living on the island of Mannahatta. The introduction of Dancing Fish blew the story wide open for me and I became completely invested in the storyline, his history and his future, and where he might be going. As a teenaged character, he's accessible to younger readers as well as adult readers who may commiserate with his new parents.

Once both sides are introduced, it's time for worlds to collide as Hudson continues to search for the elusive India passage. He comes into contact with the natives and Dancing Fish's tribe, eventually taking the young boy onto his ship as translator, away from everything he's known and the people he cares about to see a wider world off the island.

It's not very often I get to finish a book and immediately write to the author, but that is exactly what I did. I wrote to tell him that I was ecstatic about this book and that I would be recommending the omnibus purchase to my collection manager as soon as I'm back at work. I want everyone to read this and I want to be able to hand people a copy, look at them seriously and say, "You're gonna love it."

The only element of the writing that bothered me and decreased my overall score was a stiltedness early on with the crew of Hudson's expedition. The Hudson chapters before he meets Dancing Fish read like a paraphrasing of someone's journals rather than the development of a unique character. This fades immediately upon his arrival and contact with the local people, but it did make the first few chapters a little sluggish to read.

All in all, though I loved this novella. As soon as there's money in my budget for it, I'm buying the rest of the Kindle editions so I can see where he goes. An excellent historical fiction that gives you all the sense and feel of living in Manhattan back when it was still Mannahatta, still just as full of culture, beauty, artwork, and conflict as it is today.

[Gerry Petencin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicely spun historical tale, fun read, great fare for a plane trip or a quick read anytime.

I started 1609 nearly a year ago, enjoyed it from the beginning, but (as seems to be habit with me, A.D.D.?) set it down unfinished. Anyhow I wanted a Kindle read for a plane trip this past week and fired up Harald's 1609 again. And found it to be an enjoyable, easy read from beginning (again) to end. I'm impressed by the amount of hard work - research the author has put into his effort, which he documents in an equally well written postscript, So here we are : 400 hundred years after Hudson "discovered" Manhattan a modern New Yorker, Donald Trump, seems to be taking on the world. I'll be reading the next three of Harald's novellas, I'm curious to see how White Guys Take Manhattan turns out, I'm guessing it's not looking great for Dancing Fish and his people. Trump vs. the World, we'll be watching that one play out too, seems like history teaches that "the times" are always scary for somebody.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice historical novel. A quick weekend read sure to be enjoyed.

[Paul Van Heest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harald Johnson has written a terrific novella about our earliest days in 1609, the first volume of The Manhattan Series. He writes from the perspectives of native and newcomer, a boy named Dancing Fish and the explorer Henry Hudson, in a tense tale about the Dutch "founding" of Manhattan. The author introduces the two characters separately and then sets them and their societies on a collision course in the early 17th century. As a huge fan of the time period, I found his attention to detail compelling, both the history and the way people in both communities lived. The author also imbued his book with a clear love for Manhattan and the surrounding waterways, which each lead character treasures in his own way. I look forward to reading the next installment in his series.

[Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

What happened in the first encounter between Europeans and natives in New York? Mr. Johnson has fused fact and fiction and taken us to a previously unchartered territory—we witness that encounter in “1609 The Manhattan Novellas.”
The characters are vivid and the research impeccable. Native fishing techniques, folklore, and tales are seamlessly woven in. I learnt a lot. For example, about the salt front in a river. But besides the historical part, it is also solidly written with a surprising number of beautiful phrases. My only complaint is that I’m not crazy about novella formats, they end too quickly. But the follow up, 1612 is already on my Kindle, ready to be enjoyed.

[Mary Ahern · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having enjoyed the first book of this series of novellas, I'm eagerly awaiting the following editions. As a reader of history both fiction and non-fiction, I appreciated the descriptive writing which captured believably the language and cultural barriers experienced by the first European explorers and the Native Americans as the ship, captained by Henry Hudson, sails up the great river looking for a passage to the Far East. The complexity of learning to translate and communicate in English and Dutch to diverse tribes with their own entrenched ceremonies and languages is well presented.

Both cultures are in sharp contrast to each other in their sense of family, moral center and mission which brings to the forefront the immediate clash of cultures which has endured over time.

[Justin Kneissler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I struggled through this

Although this is a novella, I really struggled to complete this. It was not that the story was boring, but somehow it made me drift off to sleep.