The
Last Crossing
by Guy Vanderhaege
McClelland and Stewart, 2002
The book was chosen by CBC Radio's Canada
Reads program as THE book
Canadians should read (2003). Hmm. I was impressed by
Vanderhaege's previous novel, the
Englishman's Boy, so I decided to see for myself.
The book takes place mainly in Canada's North
West territory, circa 1880. It is the story of a diverse group of
individuals: British, American, Metis, Cree and Blackfoot, whose lives
briefly intersect. Simon Gaunt is lost in the wilderness and his twin
brother Charles and elder brother Addington set off to try to find him.
They provision their expedition in Fort Benton, Montana. Jerry Potts,
a
Scot/Blackfoot frontiersman, Mrs. Stovall, and Curtis Straw, a
horse trader, are the other main
characters. The story follows the motley band as it treks through the
prairie from Fort Benton to Fort Edmonton.
The
main characters alternate as narrators. As a result we understand the
true inner motivations of, and the misinterpretations of events by, the
characters. We understand the deceptions
between the characters. What is not said is often as important as what
is said. In my view this is a very good technique. These
characters are very well developed.
I particularly like the portrait of Potts, the frontiersman, who is
caught between two cultures. His character is based on a real person.
To the Europeans he is a near savage. In
fact he is a hero who knows what needs to be done and does it. He is
a man of integrity who does things not because of a reward but because
that is what must be done. These unsung heroes slip into our past
unnoticed but are in fact the real heroes. It is only through works of
"fiction" that we can see their importance.
Not that this is a story without action! There is a murder, which
remains a mystery throughout the novel. There are several violent
confrontations which are part of the infamous whisky trade of Fort
Whoop-Up. One comes across a ghost camp where an Indian band has
been
wiped out by small pox. There is a dramatic battle between two
Indian tribes. There is also an excellent account of the civil war
battle in the Wideness. I thought these actions sequences were
particularly well
written.
This novel is an excellent portrayal of human beings from
whatever
age who must confront the uncertainty and ambiguity of existence. I
would highly recommend it.