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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 917.304929
EAN num: 9780140298604
ISBN number: 0140298606
Label: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 528
Printing Date: April 01, 2001
Publishing house: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Release Date: April 03, 2001
Sale Popularity Level: 34636
Studio: Penguin (Non-Classics)
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Product Description:
In his most ambitious journey ever, William Least Heat-Moon sets off aboard a small boat named Nikawa (river horse in Osage) from the Atlantic at New York Harbor in hopes of entering the Pacific near Astoria, Oregon. He and his companion, Pilotis, struggle to cover some 5,000 watery miles, often following in the wakes of our most famous explorers, from Henry Hudson to Lewis and Clark.
En route, the voyagers confront massive floods, dangerous weather, and their own doubts about whether they can complete the trip. But the hard days yield incomparable pleasures: generous strangers, landscapes untouched since Sacajawea saw them, riverscapes flowing with a lively past, and the growing belief that efforts to protect our lands and waters are beginning to pay off.
Teeming with humanity, humor, and high adventure, River-Horse is an unsentimental and original arteriogram of our nation at the millennium.
Amazon.com Review:
Since hitting the American roads in Blue Highways nearly 20 years ago, William Least Heat-Moon has been following another calling--to traverse America by its rivers. 'I wanted to see those secret parts hidden from road travelers,' he writes. And from the waterways of his 5,000-mile voyage, Least Heat-Moon shares a sharp and stirring vision of America. Filling a small bottle with brine from the Atlantic Ocean, Least Heat-Moon and his wise companion, whom he calls 'Pilotis,' start up the Hudson River in a 22-foot C-Dory that Least Heat-Moon has named Nikawa--from the Osage words ni for river and kawa for horse. The voyage--from New York harbor to the Pacific Ocean--packs surprises, wisdom, regrets, mishaps, candor, and conversations that readers who savored Blue Highways and PrairyErth will delight in.
The impetus for River Horse is one of intrigue--less urgent than the departure in Blue Highways--and the narrative possesses a captivating pull as it courses westward through the strongest currents and pauses in the back eddies of contemporary American life. Least Heat-Moon is in his element. Written in short thematic chapters, River Horse plies canals, greets the Missouri's many moods, and challenges chaotic waves. Indeed, the turbulent and placid waters of America flow throughout this well-told story. When Nikawa finally reaches the Pacific Ocean, Least Heat-Moon has discovered a new America in the country he knows so well. He ponders the command that rivers hold on him and celebrates the national treasures that they are. Exceeding 500 pages, River Horse may be a long journey, but when traveling by rivers, America is a larger country. A triumphant book all the way to the salty Pacific. --Byron Ricks
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers 
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It is a disappointment that many Americans don't read after graduation...let alone know anything about American geography.
A great amount of detail, stories, and fact. I only wish he would have discussed his fellow sailors a bit more. And: more pictures!
Though there may be questions circling around Heat-Moon's style, this was a great read. I followed along his voyage with a map of the US (and a detailed map of Oregon once he reached it...I love my state) and highly recommend future readers do the same. It ads to the experience. Google Earth does as well.
-Brandon
Rated by buyers 
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William Trogdon, alias Heat-Moon, has a Ph.d in English, and it shows. He has a vast command of the language and has keen observations.
This is a very interesting book if you take the time to trace his travels on a map, or preferably, Google Earth and see sat photos of the rivers. It is also an excellent education in geography. From the harbor of New York to the Pacific Ocean is pretty impressive. I envy this man for the courage and fortitude to do this voyage.
My negatives are: a constant search for all things Indian. Trogdon seems to have trouble with his identity.
The writing is somewhat pedantic and stiff. It takes many sittings to get thru the book. Next, his willingness to eat as much meat as he can makes me sick and I thought much less of him when the book was finished. Finally, he is pretty liberal and makes nasty comments about conservatives.
Rated by buyers 
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I wanted to read about the fabulous adventure. I only made it through 30 pages of this book. The author must have read too many ancient texts translated by 19th century academics. This one failed to keep me awake. Perhaps if Pilotis (the anonymous very first mate for this voyage) published his diary I would be more interested.
Rated by buyers 
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This book is a must read for anyone who yearns to travel the American experience in a meaningful way, and yet remain seated in your favorite arm chair.
Rated by buyers 
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Heat-Moon undertook a fabulous adventure with the assistance of a seemingly very capable and helpful (and anonymous) crew; it's a shame one of them wasn't an author who was up to the task of capturing such a remarkable journey. He can't seem to keep the focus on the trip, but instead constantly writes about 'me, me, me, me, me' and how urbane and worldly he is. His expressed surprise and dissapointment at the lack of gourmet dining and Guinness in small river towns across the US is just one of the many examples that gave me the impression that he was a bit out of touch and unprepared for the realities of such a trip. Throughout the book, Heat-Moon never seems to decide if the trip is supposed to be a rugged, Lewis and Clark-type excursion to truly experiencing America by river and along the river, or an opportunity to tell the reader how superior he is by criticizing the rural communities he passes through and the agencies and people that helped make his trip possible.
He does bring up some very valid points regarding their first-hand observations of negative environmental impacts due to land-use policies, but these valuable points are lost in his smug presentation and finger-pointing. His cumbersome and pretentious writing detracts from the book's flow and kept me from feeling any real connection with the author and his story.
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