Across the Far Mountain: Wilderness of Four, No. 1 [Paperback]

Niel Hancock (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books (November 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446312134
• ISBN-13: 978-0446312134
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 3.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,280,136 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Fantasy Book, July 7, 2000

By 

Chris S. Edrington (Rolla, MO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Across the Far Mountain: Wilderness of Four, No. 1 (Paperback)

I recently purchased the Wilderness of Four Series, and found them to be delightful. If you like fantasy stories that involve a full range of charaters and creatures, with a mix of magic and lost history, then you love the books by Niel Hancock. I hope to soon see the new book "The Brandigore Gate", in bookstores soon!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for fantasy readers!!!!, June 9, 1999

By 

Amy Clements - See all my reviews

This review is from: Across the Far Mountain: Wilderness of Four, No. 1 (Paperback)

This is a wonderful book about a little bear who must come of age and eventually lead a group to victory against the bad guy. This is the first book in a series of four books which are all equally as wonderfully.

4.0 out of 5 stars Some great writing, December 1, 2011

By 

Esn024 "esn024" (Toronto, CANADA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Across the Far Mountain: Wilderness of Four, No. 1 (Paperback)

Honestly, a trend I've noticed in this series is that the very best writing often happens in the beginning. Hancock first describes a locale where the main character lives in his childhood, then something happens that makes him leave, which is when the adventure really starts.

This book is no different. It's about a bear cub born in an idyllic valley, and the first part of the book details his journey to find his mysterious father. I found this section to be fascinating and extremely well-written, with dense and beautiful language. I was particularly moved by his journey up into the snowy, forbidding mountains.

After the first part of the book, Borim the bear is cut off from the place where he started, and never returns to it. In fact, it almost seems like the location of the first part of the book is entirely inaccessible from the wider world. The world which Borim enters is suddenly filled with war and conflict, and the story is, in essence, about making a strategic retreat from enemies that seem almost unbeatable. In the process, they travel through strange lands and meet unexpected allies.

There's also a "traitor" on the inside of the team, but thankfully Hancock doesn't go the frustrating route of having Borim unaware of what the reader knows (at least, not after the first little while). Still... the beginning was the most memorable part of the book for me.

The overall story arc in this book is average, but it's not why I like the book - really, I like it because the writing (on a page-by-page basis) can be excellent. It's the little things that make it shine.