Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson

Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson

An ardent canoeist for more than 50 years, John Manuel was first introduced to the solace and wonder of canoeing under the scrutiny of his demanding father. Decades later, as he watches his father succumb to cancer, Manuel recalls this initiation into a lifetime of canoeing with both fondness and confusion. What for him was the allure of rivers? Was it the challenge of the rapids, the natural beauty his father had known? Or was it the need to pursue his own life, to escape from home and family expectations? The sweeping memories that follow capture the essence of what it means to be a seeker of dreams--a canoeist.

At times rollicking and playful, The Canoeist gives us a vivid picture of Manuel's own human experience--of falling in love, of making and breaking with friends, of fighting to save natural places, and of trying to get children to follow in one's footsteps. Chapters named for a dozen rivers carry the reader through such historic events as the fire on the Cuyahoga River, the anti-Nixon demonstrations in Washington D.C., and the revival of Tennessee's Pigeon River.

The Canoeist is a memoir that will appeal to river runners of all ages and craft, to conservationists and historians, and to anyone who enjoys a man's perspective on the struggles with one's father, the romancing of a woman, and the raising of a son.