Product Description

In 1897 a grimy steamer docked in Seattle and set into epic motion the incredible succession of events that Pierre Berton's exhilarating The Klondike Fever chronicles in all its splendid and astonishing folly. For the steamer Portland bore two tons of pure Klondike gold. And immediately, the stampede north to Alaska began. Easily as many as 100,000 adventurers, dreamers, and would-be miners from all over the world struck out for the remote, isolated gold fields in the Klondike Valley, most of them in total ignorance of the long, harsh Alaskan winters and the territory's indomitable terrain. Less than a third of that number would complete the enormously arduous mountain journey to their destination. Some would strike gold. Berton's story belongs less to the few who would make their fortunes than to the many swept up in the gold mania, to often unfortunate effects and tragic ends. It is a story of cold skies and avalanches, of con men and gamblers and dance hall girls, of sunken ships, of suicides, of dead horses and desperate men, of grizzly old miners and millionaires, of the land - its exploitation and revenge. It is a story of the human capacity to dream, and to endure.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #484667 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 492 pages

About the Author
Pierre Berton was one of Canada’s most popular and prolific authors. From narrative histories and popular culture, to picture and coffee table books to anthologies, to stories for children to readable, historical works for youth, many of his fifty books are now Canadian classics.

Born in 1920 and raised in the Yukon, Pierre Berton worked in Klondike mining camps during his university years. He spent four years in the army, rising from private to captain/instructor at the Royal Military College in Kingston. He spent his early newspaper career in Vancouver, where at 21 he was the youngest city editor on any Canadian daily. He wrote columns for and was editor of Maclean’s magazine, appeared on CBC’s public affairs program “Close-Up” and was a permanent fixture on “Front Page Challenge” for 39 years. He was a columnist and editor for the Toronto Star and was a writer and host of a series of CBC programs.

Pierre Berton received over 30 literary awards including the Governor-General’s Award for Creative Non-Fiction (three times), the Stephen Leacock Medal of Humour, and the Gabrielle Leger National Heritage Award. He received two Nellies for his work in broadcasting, two National Newspaper awards, and the National History Society’s first award for “distinguished achievement in popularizing Canadian history.” For his immense contribution to Canadian literature and history, he was awarded more than a dozen honourary degrees, is a member of the Newsman’s Hall of Fame, and is a Companion of the Order of Canada.

Pierre Berton passed away in Toronto on November 30, 2004.

Customer Reviews

A remarkable story of life.......
Mr Berton you excel yourself. This book is very well written, meticulously accurate, entertaining, and justifies its reputation as one of the very best accounts of the last of the great gold rushes. As Mr Berton says, who grew up in the site of the infamous rush in Dawson City, "it was certainly one of the strangest mass movements of human beings in history.". At least 100,000 people from all over the world set out seriously for the gold fields on the remote Klondike Valley in the late 1890s. (Probably at least 5 times that many set out half seriously, but never managed to get even close to the Klondike). Of these, only around 30,000 actually made it to their destination. Of those who made it, only around 0.5% actually made any decent money. Of those, most blew their money, and very few indeed managed to keep their money for the rest of their lives. Thousands perished on route, most of these succumbing to poorly planned expeditions, over mountainous passes and remote icefields that they never dreamed of when they set out. Most of those who actually arrived in the remote location were too exhausted financially, emotionally and physically, to bother looking for gold. Furthermore, when they arrived they found that all the land was already staked. Most simply booked a ticket on the nearest steamship, and went home.

Amongst the way there were many bizzare and tragic stories, which are too many to detail here. Avalanches, sunken ships, freezing winters, con-men, women, children, old men and young, gamblers, dance hall girls, swindlers, dead horses, suicides, -they were all there. The desperate, the poor, the rich, the ignorant, the informed, the millionaire and the pauper alike, rubbed shoulders in a wild human exodus that has seen little like it, before or since. Some of the stories Mr Berton meticulously relates, simply beg belief. It was a time of general insanity, set amidst a terrible depression, which helped spark off the 'fever', or mania being a more apt term. After news arrived of fabulous riches in gold found in Dawson, some tried to get to Dawson on bicycle, others on huge wheeled contraptions, others thought they would walk there with a handful of nuts. What many didn't realise, was that there was a reason this phenomenoly rich gold field was discovered so late in time compared to many others-it was absurdly difficult to get to. Experienced, grizzley old miners would have had serious trouble getting and surviving there over several winters, to the average office clerk, dentist and city type, it was nigh impossible-as they soon found. Many were conned and caught up in a general mania, whilst many others died. All the stories, all the tragedies, the colour, the mania, the lucky and the unlucky are described.

James Michener thought much of the book, and based his novel Journey, another exellent story of this gold rush, on parts of the Edmonton stories contained herein.

It is a story of humanity as good as any. A delight to read on cold winters nights, in the safety and security of a warm fire, a homely house, and a hot meal. Many in this book gave up this and more for a dream that could never be fulfilled, for they were too late, and even though they were willing to die trying.

They didn't know that the past was already behind them....

Universal story about people, greed, and dreams
It's truly amazing what people will do when really motivated. The Klondike goldrush is one of many past happenings that tells us so much about our species. Berton recounts many true stories about historical figures and ordinary people who perservered and often fell victim to their own ill-conceived dreams. The admirable American frontier spirit is revealed in this book too with all of its blemishes. I guess that's the value of reading history. Many parallels with todays digital goldrush too. I highly recommend this book especially if you plan a cruise or adventure trip to Alaska. Very entertaining! And does Soapy Smith reminds you of any currently successful politicians?

A Wow! on every page.
This is one of the best popular histories that I've ever read. There's a Wow! on nearly every page, because the climate was so extreme, the location so rugged and remote, the draw of fortune seekers so extensive, the potential riches (realized by few) so fantastic, the US-Canadian contrast of governmental oversight so stark, and the characters so colorful (even "Swiftwater Bill Gates" -- no relation -- makes an appearance). In a Skagway bookstore in 1994, I overheard a sales clerk saying that this was THE book to read about the Klondike gold rush, and I bought it. I can't imagine a better one.