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"Enchanting...A book filled with so much love...Long before Oregon, Rinker Buck has convinced us that the best way to see America is from the seat of a covered wagon." —The Wall Street Journal
"Amazing...A real nonfiction thriller." —Ian Frazier, The New York Review of Books
"Absorbing...Winning...The many layers in The Oregon Trail are linked by Mr. Buck's voice, which is alert and unpretentious in a manner that put me in mind of Bill Bryson's comic tone in A Walk in the Woods." —Dwight Garner, The New York Times
A major bestseller that has been hailed as a "quintessential American story" (Christian Science Monitor), Rinker Buck's The Oregon Trail is an epic account of traveling the 2,000-mile length of the Oregon Trail the old-fashioned way—in a covered wagon with a team of mules—that has captivated readers, critics, and booksellers from coast to coast. Simultaneously a majestic journey across the West, a significant work of history, and a moving personal saga, Buck's chronicle is a "laugh-out-loud masterpiece" (Willamette Week) that "so ensnares the emotions it becomes a tear-jerker at its close" (Star Tribune, Minneapolis) and "will leave you daydreaming and hungry to see this land" (The Boston Globe).
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Creators
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Publisher
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Awards
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Release date
June 30, 2015 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781442386228
- File size: 481111 KB
- Duration: 16:42:18
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Rinker Buck sucks the listener into his "see America slowly" trip over the Oregon Trail in a mule-drawn covered wagon with his brother, Nick. It's a crazy, arduous, and sometimes dangerous adventure completely out of its time. The hilarious and heartwarming relationship between Rinker--neat freak, control freak, planner--and Nick--a slob with a dirty dog, a penchant for swearing, and the ability to fix absolutely anything--is clearly apparent in Buck's voice. He shares a fair bit of history about mules, Schuttler wagons, cholera, Mormons, and female pioneers. Occasionally, Buck can be a bit stiff in the historical narration, but this weakness is more than made up for by his humorous self-deprecation as he chases runaway mules across the Wyoming plains in Walmart slippers dodging antelope skeletons and gets ripped off by an Amish tack merchant. A.B. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine -
April 20, 2015
Despite growing up on the East Coast, Buck’s (Flight of Passage) fondest childhood memories are of going on family trips with his eccentric father, who insisted on “seeing America slowly” by traveling and camping out in a covered wagon. These trips ignited a lust for travel and history that stuck with Buck, and that came roaring back when he found out that the Oregon Trail is meticulously preserved and traversable. Buck and his foul-mouthed handyman brother, Nick, set out to follow the 2,000-mile path, with only a covered wagon and mule team as their mode of transportation. The ensuing tale combines the brothers’ personal narrative with the remarkable history of the trail, including written accounts from the pioneers who braved it. What could have been a set of rote diary entries is anything but, as Buck’s enthusiasm for the often arduous trip, coupled with his honest assessment of poor judgments and mistakes along the way, makes for an entertaining and enlightening account of one of America’s most legendary migrations. Even readers who don’t know a horse from a mule will find themselves swept up in this inspiring and masterful tale of perseverance and the pioneer spirit. Illus. Agent: Sloan Harris, ICM.
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