Customer Reviews

Journey Into Mohawk Country

5 star:		(7)
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3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
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When I first heard about this, I didn't know what to think. A graphic novel made from a 17th century journal. But it works. Wonderfully illustrated. A great way to learn about a moment in our country's history and have a good time doing it.

This account of the first encounters with Mohawks, from the diary of Dutch van end Bogaert, is a rare combination of compelling story, first-rate scholarship, and appealing presentation. Every kid, every adult should have a chance to read this record. It adds an important chapter to the early history of America.

I recently learned about this book on NPR's The Leonard Lopate Show [...] and had to get a copy. It does not disappoint. A perfect way to read about history.

This was a great read...perfect not only for kids in school, but for anyone curious about history. The graphic novel format is ideally suited to this text, as George O'Connor's expressive illustrations illuminate this young trader's musings. I'm told not a single spelling is changed, that no editing was done to the original writings. Highly recommended.

"Journey Into Mohawk Country"
Written by Harmen Meyndertsz van den Bogaert
Illustrated by George O'Connor
(First Second/Roaring Brook Press, 2006)
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I am a big sucker for early frontier lore -- Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone, the journals of Lewis & Clark, "The Last Of The Mohicans," William Messner-Loebs' still-captivating "Journey," et. al. -- and the more historically accurate the story, the better. This slim graphic novel is a humor-laced visualization of a real journal kept by a Dutch trade representative who was dispatched into the heart of Mohawk territory (now upstate New York) during the winter of 1634-35, in order to buffer the Dutch trade rights against the encroachments of French traders in the North, who were slowly taking over the still-active trade in beaver pelts. The trip was perilous and bold, but also tiresome and grubby at times, with van den Bogaert and his two companions slogging through the backwoods while being handed off to a series of guides from various villages and tribes.

Illustrator George O'Connor is slightly disingenuous when he credits the Dutch journal-keeper as the sole author of this book, since in adapting the text for comicbook format, he takes great liberty not only in crafting the ambiance of the book, but also creating a visually-based subtext in which we see the Mohawk tribesmen rolling their eyes at the trio of European interlopers, a parallel narrative in which the men inadvertently ruffle the feathers of their hosts in a variety of circumstances. I don't wholly buy the idea that these three Europeans were dundering, befuddled idiots -- I suspect they had to be made of sterner stuff to be sent out into the rough, snowy frontier of the 1630s -- but it works as a narrative device, not only spicing up the otherwise dry original text, but also providing opportunities to imbue the native Americans with depth and dimension. This is a very lively, ribald depiction of life on the very early American frontier, and would make great supplemental reading to a course on American colonial history, or a Native American studies course. It's also just a great, fun read. Recommended! (Joe Sixpack, ReadThatAgain book reviews)

This is exactly the book that I need and it came in the same condition as the seller described

This graphic novel was a great buy; I cannot believe the level of storytelling achieved using a simple journal as a skeleton. Anyone who enjoys this period in American history or historical graphic novels in general will probably be glad that they gave it a chance; I happen to enjoy both, so this book was a home run.

This is a brightly colored illustrated book with cartoon like figures who tell the story of the Dutch's venture into the Americas. It is the Journal of a young traveler Harmen Van den Bogaret as he discovers the natives of the wilderness destined to become New York. The illustrations are very realistic and current to the time period so the history told comes alive to the reader.
Since the illustrations of the people are somewhat comical and so colorful the story is told with humor and not with the dignity that should be awarded the natives who gave the settlers welcome.

The real diary of a 23-year-old 16th-century Dutch trader forms the basis for this ambitious, if ultimately disapointing, graphic experiment. The Dutchman and two companions were sent from the Dutch West India Company's outpost at Fort Orange (present day Albany) into the Mohawk nation (part of the Iroqouis federation). Their goal was to try and reinvigorate the dying beaver pelt trade that was apparently being siphoned off by French traders operating from Canada. This isn't exactly the most riveting of topics, and the Van der Bogaert's painfully dry diary entries don't bring much to the table. There's a whole lot of description of walking, what they ate, counting of longhouses at Indian settlements, and sitting around waiting for guides. Simply put, other than a few isolated tidbits, such as the description of healing ceremony involving vomiting on the ill, and a ceremonial battle, the 140 pages are dull as ditchwater. Which is too bad, because O'Connor's artwork and Hilary Sycamore's excellent colors do bring the place and time to life. One wishes that a writer had used the diaries for background research, and written a good story around it -- now that would have been worth reading.