Sitka
by Louis L'Amour
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Description
BLOOD AND ICEMajestically it rose from the icy waters, the gateway to the awesome wilderness of Alaska. Sitka drew all brand of adventurers, con men, criminals, and pioneers—men such as trail-tough, battle-hardened Jean LaBarge. He left the swamps of the Susquehanna behind for the rugged beauty—and deadly challenges—of this frozen frontier. But the empire-hungry Russians had already established a foothold in Sitka and they wouldn’t give it up without a fierce and treacherous show more struggle that stretched from San Francisco to the palaces of St. Petersburg. Now Jean faces the most dangerous fight of his life: a fight for a passionate woman and the right to claim Alaska for America. show less
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Member Reviews
Written in 1957, in the run up to Alaska statehood, Sitka is a useful frontier adventure story chock full of manifest destiny propaganda. Jean Le Barge and his triumph over the evil Russians back in the good ol' frontier days of Alaska, keep this book's pages turning. This is all typical L'Amour fare: rugged individualism, gun slinging heroics, women who need men to protect them ect. From a cultural history point of view, this book is great. Sitka encapsulates 1950's values and casts them back on a benevolent frontier past. The cold war parallels alone are worth the read if you are a student of American cultural history. The subtle resource metaphors are numerous and entertaining to unravel. Plus there are some classic tough guy one show more liners thrown in that had me laughing out loud. show less
Not a typical L'Amour western, Sitka takes place mainly in Russian-owned Alaska. Our protagonist, Jean LaBarge, is daring, smart, and interested in making his fortune trading with the Russian colony. Politics are ever-present in this book, but not annoyingly so. While not one of this author's better works, I did enjoy reading it.
One of his better ones a full epic story based around historic Alaska.
Good, solid L'Amour. The men are men, the women are women, and the furry animals are furry animals.
Not among my favorite Louis L'Amour novels. Worth reading once however.
Interesting introduction to Alaska for a 12 year old
Product Description
He was born in the swamps of the Eastern States, but he came of age on the frontier. Now, Jean LaFarge finds himself swept up in an epic battle in the wilds of Alaska, where a tyranical Russian has seized control of the fur trade-and the land. But Jean has never backed down from a fight, even one as bold and dangerous as this-a battle that will shape the future of America.
From the Publisher
Majestically it rose from the icy waters, the gateway to the awesome wilderness of Alaska. Even as he grew up hunting the dangerous swampland of the Susquehanna, Jean LaBarge felt drawn by the strength and beauty of that distant land. Now a battle-hardened adventurer, Jean boldly faces the dangers of Russian-owned Sitka. Those show more Russians who will violently protect their foothold on the continent move swiftly to destroy Jean--just as they have threatened Helena, the woman who challenged their treachery, the woman Jean desires. Fired by Helena's courage and by the call of his country, Jean is ready for a fight--to win Alaska for America. show less
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Author Information
869+ Works 99,915 Members
Born in Jamestown, North Dakota on March 22, 1908, Louis L'Amour's adventurous life could have been the subject of one of his novels. Striking out on his own in 1923, at age 15, L'Amour began a peripatetic existence, taking whatever jobs were available, from skinning dead cattle to being a sailor. L'Amour knew early in life that he wanted to be a show more writer, and the experiences of those years serve as background for some of his later fiction. During the 1930s he published short stories and poetry; his career was interrupted by army service in World War II. After the war, L'Amour began writing for western pulp magazines and wrote several books in the Hopalong Cassidy series using the pseudonym Tex Burns. His first novel, Westward the Tide (1950), serves as an example of L'Amour's frontier fiction, for it is an action-packed adventure story containing the themes and motifs that he uses throughout his career. His fascination with history and his belief in the inevitability of manifest destiny are clear. Also present and typical of L'Amour's work are the strong, capable, beautiful heroine who is immediately attracted to the equally capable hero; a clear moral split between good and evil; reflections on the Native Americans, whose land and ways of life are being disrupted; and a happy ending. Although his work is somewhat less violent than that of other western writers, L'Amour's novels all contain their fair share of action, usually in the form of gunfights or fistfights. L'Amour's major contribution to the western genre is his attempt to create, in 40 or more books, the stories of three families whose histories intertwine as the generations advance across the American frontier. The novels of the Irish Chantry, English Sackett, and French Talon families are L'Amour's most ambitious project, and sadly were left unfinished at his death. Although L'Amour did not complete all of the novels, enough of the series exists to demonstrate his vision. L'Amour's strongest attribute is his ability to tell a compelling story; readers do not mind if the story is similar to one they have read before, for in the telling, L'Amour adds enough small twists of plot and detail to make it worth the reader's while. L'Amour fans also enjoy the bits of information he includes about everything from wilderness survival skills to finding the right person to marry. These lessons give readers the sense that they are getting their money's worth, that there is more to a L'Amour novel than sheer escapism. With over 200 million copies of his books in print worldwide, L'Amour must be counted as one of the most influential writers of westerns in this century. He died from lung cancer on June 10, 1988. (Bowker Author Biography) Louis L'Amour, truly America's favorite storyteller, was the first fiction writer ever to receive the Congressional Gold Medal from the United States Congress in honor of his life's work, & was also awarded the Medal of Freedom. There are over 260 million copies of his books in print worldwide. (Publisher Provided) show less
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1957
- Important places
- Sitka, Alaska, USA; USA; Alaska, USA
- Dedication
- To Kathy
- First words
- Jean LaBarge stopped beside the trunk of a huge cypress, scanning the woods for Rob Walker.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)They stood together, watching the flag flutter at the masthead, and listened to the dull boom of the guns out on the bay, and heard the echoes thrown back by the mountains, while on the ageless slopes of Mount Edgecombe the sun made a moment of glory.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 830
- Popularity
- 33,221
- Reviews
- 8
- Rating
- (3.66)
- Languages
- English, German, Russian
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 27
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 15
