Customer Reviews

Seaman: The Dog Who Explored the West with Lewis & Clark (Peachtree Junior Publication)

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4 star:		(4)
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Ok, ok--so at 49, I'm a little over the age limit for juvenile historical fiction. Nevertheless, I bought this book for myself and "wolfed" it down in short order--something that Seaman would be too civilized to do. There was plenty of action and thrills as I traveled up the Missouri and crossed the Great Plains and the Rockies with the intrepid band of explorers, and I got all choked up at the end of their journey when the group parted ways (I won't give away the details, though!). I had fun learning a lot about one of the great historical events of our nation. This book is a fine read at any age and I highly recommend it!

Seaman: The Dog Who Explored The West With Lewis & Clark is a wonderfully written, very highly recommended historical novel. Young readers will thrill to the story of an epic American saga showcased through Lewis' brave and loyal dog Seaman, the first dog to cross the continent and open up the west for the fledgling country of America. Author Gail Karwoski has given meticulous attention to historic detail and background, always the hallmark of a superior historical novel. She combines this with an impressive gift for storytelling that will engage young readers from first page to last. One special and unique feature is the Q & A format for the "Author Notes" at the end of this remarkable work.

Seaman: The Dog Who Explored the West With Lewis and Clark
by Gail Langer Karwoski 183 pages
The book Seaman started out with Merriwether Lewis buying the Newfoundland dog Seaman from a hunter. Lewis and Clark were getting their explorers ready to go explore the continent. All of the characters were real explorers who were in the Corps of Discovery. This book showed how brave Sacagawea really was. She never once panicked when the boat tipped over. She was calm and quiet. Seaman, one of the main characters, was a wonderful, intelligent animal. What I liked about this book was that I really enjoyed reading it. It made me understand the Lewis and Clark expedition a lot better, and I loved how they included Seaman along in their journey. Seaman was a really smart dog and he cheered the explorers up whenever they were sad and homesick. This book was also based on true events. What I didn't like about this book was how at the end, Seaman didn't stay with Merriwether Lewis. He stayed with John Colter and continued to explore the West. I wish I knew what happened to Seaman. All in all I loved this book! I would definently recommend this book. I can tell it is for younger readers, but I still thought it was a nice book. I think that any animal and history fans will LOVE this book! Seaman is so smart and he has a wonderful personality. I am happy I chose this book.

This book is the best book I have ever read in my life. I have read The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. LEWIS, but you cannot compare it. This book made me cry at the end, ... partly because it was due for library tomrrow. I thought that this book is in depth, written well, and gives you a feeling you probably haven't felt before. I strongly reccomend it for any young reader. Besides Seaman, my favorite character would have to be the ever cheerful George Shannon. Next would have to be John Colter. He showed his bravery at the right times, and he as was calm and levelheaded as Shannon in most emergencies. Then come Sacagawea, the only girl on the expedition. She turned out to be one of the most important women in history because she was so peaceful and quiet on the outside, yet was energetic and playful on the inside. This book describes all those characters very well. This book (as I said before) is the best book I have ever read, and perhaps ever will read.
-Violet L. Smith

If you like books about adventure and discovery this is the book for you! I enjoyed this book because of the fact that I have been on most of the rivers and most of the places that Lewis and Clark went to in this book. At the beginning of the book it explains that Captain Lewis and Captain Clark are being sent by President Jefferson to explore the Louisiana Purchase (at least the upper half) and to go to the other side of the continent. I was amazed by the fact that it took 10 shots or more to kill a grizzly bear but I won't tell you all the details. I don't want to spoil it for you. If you are a kid or adult. I would highly recommend reading this book. I read this book for a school assignment.

Gail Langer Karwoski has done an excellent job of fictionalizing the Lewis & Clark adventure by drawing on details from their diaries. Using Lewis' dog, Seaman, as a focal point, she details the many dangers and perils faced by the explorer group while doing good character development of the protagonists. Sacagawea and York, a slave owned by Clark, are shown in their pivotal contributions (often ignored) to the expedition. My only criticism revolves around the portrayal of the various Native American groups encountered by Lewis & Clark. Because she has drawn on the diaries and their viewpoint, various tribes are depicted as either "noble savages" or "thieving Indians" and deeper cultural issues are not explored as to the traditions of these varied groups. Overall an excellent book, but perhaps best read with adult guidance.

I love this book alot.It was fun reading it.I espeically loved it beacuse I have a Newfoundland dog myself.They are great dogs to own.

I bought this book for my 10 yr old daughter for Christmas, along with 2 others. We have a Newfoundland and I thought she would enjoy reading this. She started reading it Christmas Day, and finished it the same day. She would read passages from the book to me. She learned about Lewis and Clark in school, but this gave her a better understanding of their expedition. Perhaps her teacher should have used this book to make the learning process that much easier. My daughter loved it! Any book she reads in a day will be on her bookshelf forever, and will be read many times over. Who knew history could be so interesting to a 10 yr old?!

I would recommend this book to any parent of a child who loves to learn through reading. It's off the beaten path, but that is what makes it so interesting. The children don't need to know they are learning history. To them, they are reading a good book. The added bonus IS that they are learning.

Seaman is a dog who has never been to the sea. When his owner sells him to Lewis (as in Lewis and Clark) his sea life adventure begins. He has to overcome Indians, wolves, the long winter, bears, and a rampaging buffalo. To go along with their troubles they get stuck on the Rocky Mountains with Sacagawea, her little baby boy, and no food. But of course it might get better, but it always gets worse. One of their crew members gets sick and the captains don't know what to do, and if that isn't enough, Seaman gets captured by Indians. If you like a good adventure or you like to learn or you like both this story is a combination of the two. Hope you enjoy the book!

Seaman: The dog who explored the west with Lewis and Clark by Gail Langer Karwoski 179 pages
In 1804, Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, and the Corps of Discovery set out for their now-legendary exploration of the Louisiana Purchase, departing St. Louis to travel across the country to the Pacific Ocean and back. Seaman, a 150-pound Newfoundland dog, is introduced to young historians. Seaman travels the long journey with the Corps, serving a key role in the expedition's success, catching and retrieving game, and protecting the expedition team from wild animals and hostile Indians. Seaman and the Corps of Discovery are joined by an indian woman named Sacagawea who helped translate the other indian tribes languages into english. Seaman and The Corps of Discovery form friendships with several Indian tribes; survive near-death encounters; grizzly bear attacks; and buffalo bull stampedes through the camp; cross the Continental Divide; overcome the wounding of their seemingly fearless leader, Meriwether Lewis; rejoice as they return to civilization in 1806.

I really like this book because I learned alot more about their journey and perils they faced. The only part in this book I didn't like was that Seaman didn't stay with Meriwether Lewis in the end. I would really recommend this book because it was fun to read and kept you wondering what was going to happen next.