Great Heart: The History of a Labrador Adventure

A true North American adventure - in every sense of the word.

This is a fabulous narrative of a wilderness adventure, like many others filled with the hazards adventurers encounter when they stray far from home. What makes the story unique is not a side-bar intrigue of romance and mystery but a deep underlying question about human motivation, relationships and dreams - as lived through the minds and bodies of the adventurous. The story is told with skill and grace - and is spellbinding.

Using Leon and Mina Hubbard's diaries, as well as those of their guides, Dillon Wallace and George Elson (great character!), Davidson and Rugge reconstruct the extraordinary story of a woman's search for the truth behind her husband's death in 1903. They flesh out the facts, give form to the unspoken fears and desires hidden between lines of desperate journal entries, and then skillfully breathe life into the tragic events. A powerful docunovel in a class all its own. Don't miss it.

As well as Great Heart, I have read both of the source books by Dillon Wallace, the book by Mina Hubbard, as well as the book by Cabot, cited in Great Heart. This is a great bit of sleuthing and research and very well presented. In addition to bringing to life a historic disaster, this book does a great job of posing the question: Why do "explorers" take liberties with the truth in their books, and then why does the press shut their eyes to that and cover up the inconsistencies. Once you read this book, go out and get the source books so you can further explore this for yourself. And then... go out and canoe it! A must read for anyone who likes the Canadian bush.

This is a truly remarkable book. It is one of a few books that I can unconditionally recommend to friends. It appeals to the outdoorsman/woman as well as those seeking insight into the human spirit as it deals with tragedy, tenacity, and vision. A sobering and, yet, inspiring read.

Why don't more people know about this book? It puts most adventure stories to shame and makes most survivors of "hardships" look like wimps. Adventurers with virtually no prior experience, wearing wool sweaters and cotton pants, carrying tons of food, canoe and portage through uncharted waters only to get hopelessly lost. Between the bugs, cold, lack of food, etc... you wonder how any could survive. The concepts of leadership, friendship and conquest are tested. After a harrowing adventure ending in death, the widow of the expedition leader races a team member into the wilds of Labrador the following year. In 1905, it was hard enough for a man to make this unprecedented trip, and unheard of for a woman to try. It is a must read for all adventure lovers!