Big Timber

by Bertrand William Sinclair

For a week thereafter Benton developed moods of sourness, periods of scowling thought. He tried to speed up his gang, and having all spring driven them at top speed, the added straw broke the back of their patience, and Stella heard some sharp interchanges of words. He quelled one incipient mutiny through sheer dominance, but it left him more short of temper, more crabbedly moody than ever. Eventually his ill-nature broke out against Stella over some trifle, and she--being herself an aggrieved party to his transactions--surprised her own sense of the fitness of things by retaliating in kind.

321 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1916

Reviews

[Robert Nolin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this for research about logging. As a novel, it's very mechanical, pulpy. Unusual for 1917, the first person is a woman, though the author was a man. He seems to have never figured out who Stella, his protagonist, is. I DNF'd about 60% through.

[Maryana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I came across this book completely by random selection, but I'm pleased I gave it a chance. I wish I could give it 4 stars, as it's awfully close to the mark, but there were a few niggles that dropped it down a couple of pegs.

The plot was solid enough - a posh, young woman, Stella Benton, moves after the death of her father from a cultured, city life to the uncouth world of logging in British Columbia, entirely dependent on the charity and goodwill of her brother, Charlie. Eventually, she decides to escape the drudgery of this new poor lifestyle for a loveless (on her side) marriage with the taciturn and slightly enigmatic Jack Fyfe.

Now this is what I'd been waiting for during the whole book. Jack is the best character of the entire novel! An intelligent, kind and resilient man, who works hard and deserves far better than he gets.

Stella, however, is the protagonist the whole way through, and sometimes it's quite hard to push through her sanctimonious attitude, especially where Jack is concerned. I myself couldn't see what Jack found in her, but hey ho, she certainly got lucky!

The setting of the novel was lovely though - a beautiful forest set on the banks of a large lake, and the descriptions were fairly evocative.

It's worth reading to the end and putting up with Stella's frequent woe-is-me sessions to see how it all ties up together, so all in all I'd recommend giving it a go.

[Naulayne Raiche Enders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story! It is about the beginning of the logging industry in Britsh Coumba. Stella goes there from the East coast to hel her brother in his logging business. She ends up being a logging camp cook. She marries a neigboring timber owner who is more established and successful. Trials and difficulties finally unite the couple. I was a little discouraged in the middle that in typical fashion she would walk away with someone else. So glad that didn't happen!

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Looking for a theme song to go with this novel by Canadian writer Bertrand Sinclair, you might pick Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” It’s a story set in the old growth woods of British Columbia, where a one-sided marriage of convenience leads to a good deal of heartbreak and disappointment.

Read my review at my blog.