Five Months on the Missouri River

Paddling a Dugout Canoe

Non-Fiction - Adventure
300 Pages
Reviewed on 04/03/2021
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Peggy Jo Wipf for Readers' Favorite

Five Months on the Missouri River: Paddling a Dugout Canoe by Thomas Elpel is an intriguing book that maps out what Meriwether Lewis and William Clark could have experienced when they made one of their more famous expeditions. The author teams up with Churchill Clark, a descendant of Captain William Clark, to hollow out a log large enough to carry him down the Missouri River. Elpel fully illustrated this book with photos of his progress from Montana to St. Louis, Missouri. The author tries many new foods, learns in-depth navigational knacks, and has a greater understanding of the skills these men needed to survive in an uncivilized land. He believes, “Life is too short for ordinary dreams.” This journey is one few have traveled.

Living along the Natchez Trace, I have visited many places the great explorers surveyed. The Meriwether Lewis Monument has been a highlight in our historical field trips. Thomas Elpel brings Lewis and Clark’s expedition alive as he tries to replicate what they would have done. Digging out a canoe, eating food that they would have eaten, keeping a detailed journal, and documenting the plant and animal life; this book gives you a visual idea of what these men experienced. It’s interesting the changes Thomas Elpel encountered, such as dams that are now in place, currents have changed, and islands have appeared or disappeared. Overall, this book has an amazing way of bringing history alive in a colorful way. You feel as if you explored these lands as Lewis and Clark. I would highly recommend Five Months on the Missouri River to anyone who loves American history, teachers, and parents.