The Oregon Trail

By Rinker Buck,

Book cover of The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey

Book description

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • #1 Indie Next Pick • Winner of the PEN New England Award

“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…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked The Oregon Trail as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I had never heard of Rinker Buck—nor of C-Span Book TV, for that matter—when one day, flipping through channels, I landed on him giving a talk about his then-new book, The Oregon Trail. I was smitten. As soon as his talk ended, I rushed to my local library to check out a copy.

Part travelogue, part memoir, part history lesson, The Oregon Trail had me mesmerized from the first page. “Exceptional” is not too strong a word to describe Buck’s skill as a writer and his extraordinary 2000-mile journey in a real covered wagon pulled by mules, tracing the pioneers’…

From Martha's list on the eclectic reader of nonfiction.

This is a true story about different people on a majestic but dangerous journey traveling cross country in America during the 18th century in a covered wagon, hoping to escape to a better life.

We see how travel in this new world is full of harrowing adventures which helps to bring them together instead of tearing them apart. Ordinary people shine bright to survive this treacherous journey, and I learned that the people, not the wilderness, are the winners in this travel journal rich in personal stories.

It is a book with a big heart.

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