Phantom Lake: North of 54 (Currents

by Birk Sproxton

Phantom Lake explores the stories, legends, and tall tales that make up "Flin Flon," a real imaginary place perched on rocky outcrops and lakes of the Canadian Shield. Birk Sproxton traverses the high latitudes of Manitoba and Saskatchewan in a quest for the mystery of Flin Flon and in search of himself. The northern stories, like Shield Lakes seen from the air, become ink-blots to test the writer's mettle. Sproxton tells of the first gold rush, the draining of Flin Flon Lake, the emergence of the open pit, smelter smoke and slag pour, headframes, and tailings ponds. At the center of this fictional and historical mosaic lies the elusive Phantom Lake.

228 pages, Paperback

First published August 31, 2001

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting, slightly confusing yet enjoyable combination of fact, fiction and something in between set in a real but fictional place within the Canadian Shield called Flin Flon. Each chapter tells a different story or set of stories relating the history of the Canadian lakes, their towns and mining communities wrapped up like fireside stories told by grandparents and great aunts and uncles. The stories are based on truth but added to with fiction set in real and imaginary places making the morales and feel of the stories the focus rather than the places themselves. Similar stories have been woven around the hearths of the Welsh valleys and gives more of an appreciation and sense of an area than entirely true stories ever could. Having said that, I think I missed out on a lot of what this book can offer as I'm not a local in any sense of the word so some kind of context somewhere might have helped somewhat. Or maybe it has been written as a bit of inside joke or story, aimed at those who know...

[Wayne Inkster · Rating 2 out of 5]

I started the book and loved it... but as the book went on I found it harder and harder to hold my interest. A lot of great facts about the area, but something was missing.

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Filled with facts about the land and blended seamlessly with literary studies about an underground man from The Sunless City, a novel written about Lake Flin Flon, the lake that becomes a ghost of its former self.

Sproxton revels in the literal and figurative implications for a mining town.

Anyone brought up or with connections to Canada's northern mining towns will enjoy this book.

[Allison Brizburk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up a book and fell in love with an author. This book is by far my favorite that I've read. Intelligent humor and beautiful poems. This is a must read for anyone who appreciates the fine art of writing.