Dead Man's Rapids

(Paperback)

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Description

When 13-year-old Ben Ward left school to work with his Pa in a logging camp, a winter of peeling potatoes and setting tables wasnt the adventure he had in mind. Still, come spring, he signs up for the log drive with his friend Nevers, wishing the head cook on the wanigan (the floating cook shack) could be someone other than his crabby Pa. Fate, with a wink, complies, and Pa quitsonly to be replaced by someone far worse: Pete Sardman, aka Old Sard, a cantankerous character complete with a greasy apron, an eye patch, one deaf ear, and plenty to say.

Luckily, theres also the rest of the crewa colorful, sometimes outrageous company of men. Together Ben and Nevers endure freezing weather, dangerous rapids, logjams, storms and floods, and a number of gripping tall tales, along the way learning about logging on the river and a whole lot more about life.

Taking up where Blackwater Ben left off, Dead Mans Rapids returns to the north woods of Minnesota in the late nineteenth century, and with warmth, humor, and attention to historical detail engages readers both young and old.

Reviews

"The Durbins have a knack for realistically depicting life on a rugged frontier and the many dangers of driving millions of board feet of logs down rivers to sawmills, an annual event in 19th- and early-20th-century America. Fans of Gary Paulsen will enjoy immersing themselves in a grand adventure. Fine historical fiction that will successfully transport readers into an out-of-the-ordinary time and place."Kirkus Reviews

"The action and period details of this historical novel, reminiscent of Jennifer L. Holms Our Only May Amelia and Boston Jane series, will captivate even reluctant readers."School Library Journal

"The authors give just enough information about logging, including illegal clear cuts, to bring history to life without getting bogged down in details. Adventure stories are always appealing to kids, especially boys, but this account of life on a logging cook boat will interest adults, too."Pioneer Press

"The story would be an excellent novel to include classrooms studying Minnesota history or logging in the late 19th century."Oneota Reading Journal

Author Bio

William Durbin is a writer and former teacher who lives on Lake Vermilion at the edge of Minnesotas Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. A winner of the Great Lakes Book Award and a two-time winner of the Minnesota Book Award, he has published eleven novels for young readers, including The Broken Blade, Wintering, and, also published by Minnesota, Song of Sampo Lake, Blackwater Ben, and The Darkest Evening.

Barbara Durbin is a lifelong educator who has worked as an elementary school teacher and a teacher of gifted and talented programs.