Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West
by Stephen E. Ambrose
This book is on the extracurricular reading list for the Mater Amabilis™ high school plans, which you can find linked from the main high school page. It fits well with American history and North American geography. I picked this book up when our library wasn't open and I was reading from the shelves. At almost 500 pages, it supplied plenty of reading material.
Despite its length, it never dragged. Ambrose's prose is lyrical. He is able to coalesce mountains of research into a coherent story. I most appreciated his ability to write eloquently of Lewis and Clark's courage, perseverance, and other virtues, while always gently but clearly acknowledging their failings, in particular in their relationships and treatment of Native Americans and slaves. Every now and then, Ambrose describes some obscure location on the journey and you remember he's literally traveled in their footsteps, in some places more than once.
The book is best for mature readers as there are numerous references to intimate behavior most of us would deem immoral. There are also a few derogatory comments recorded from Lewis about Roman Catholics and other missionaries, though very few.
This is really a magnificent book. It explains the historical context of the Lewis and Clark journey, provides a detailed description from beginning to end, delves into the personalities of Lewis (and somewhat into the other members of the party), and explores the immediate and long-term ramifications of the exploration and later publication of the journals. Ambrose provides a balanced story, revealing the faults as well as admiring the accomplishments.
It is a long and dense book, one that requires an investment of time and focus many high schoolers may lack. For First Son, I have assigned excerpts of the journals in his American History course, but decided this book would simply take too much time. My second child, First Daughter, will most certainly read and love it when she is in high school.
I have received nothing in exchange for this post. I requested this book from another member at PaperBackSwap.com (affiliate link). Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links.
