Northwest Passage (book)

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Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage (book).jpg
Author Matthew James, based on the song by Stan Rogers
IllustratorMatthew James
Cover artist Michael Solomon
Country Canada
LanguageEnglish
Subject Northwest Passage song
Genre Sea story
Published2013 Groundwood Books
Media typeChildren's picture book
Pages50
ISBN 978-1-55498-153-3

Northwest Passage is a book based upon the famous Canadian song "Northwest Passage". The song is a story of a man's travel through the arctic of Canada while following famed explorers like Alexander Mackenzie, David Thompson, John Franklin, and Henry Kelsey. The book is written and narrated by Matthew James, who is a Canadian musician, illustrator, and author and has been nominated for, and won, the Governor General's Award for children's literature. The book is full of unique illustrations, also done by Matt James, showing the story as it is mentioned in the song. It also includes a timeline of Canadian exploration, miniature biographies on explorers of the Northwest Passage, and portraits of major explorers. [1]

Contents

Plot

A book based on the well-known song "Northwest Passage" first sung by Stan Rogers in 1981, Northwest Passage tells a tale about the song and the facts behind it. The basis of the song and story is the fateful sea voyage made by John Franklin in 1845, which led to both his ships and his entire crew, as well as his life being lost. [1]

Song

The song the book is based on, "Northwest Passage", includes many lyrics, including the chorus - based greatly of John Franklin's expedition - and a final verse that was never recorded. [1] The song is considered one of the best Canadian songs ever, and the fourth best Canadian song of 2005. [2]

The chorus of the song is: [1]

Ah for just one time I would take the Northwest Passage,
To find the hand of Franklin reaching for the Beaufort Sea,
Tracing one warm line through a land so wild and savage,
And make a Northwest Passage to the sea.

Narration

The narration, done by Matt James, focuses on the fateful story, and facts about, John Franklin's disastrous journey. Matt James tells facts and details about the song. The narration includes a well-described story of the mystery surrounding the disappearance of John Franklin, who is described as brave, but not brilliant. [1]

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The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea lane between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Arctic Archipelago of Canada. The eastern route along the Arctic coasts of Norway and Siberia is accordingly called the Northeast Passage (NEP). The various islands of the archipelago are separated from one another and from Mainland Canada by a series of Arctic waterways collectively known as the Northwest Passages, Northwestern Passages or the Canadian Internal Waters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Franklin</span> British naval officer and explorer (1786–1847)

Sir John Franklin was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. After serving in wars against Napoleonic France and the United States, he led two expeditions into the Canadian Arctic and through the islands of the Arctic Archipelago, in 1819 and 1825, and served as Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen's Land from 1839 to 1843. During his third and final expedition, an attempt to traverse the Northwest Passage in 1845, Franklin's ships became icebound off King William Island in what is now Nunavut, where he died in June 1847. The icebound ships were abandoned ten months later and the entire crew died from causes such as starvation, hypothermia, and scurvy.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">King William Island</span> Island in Nunavut, Canada

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 James, M. (2013). Northwest Passage. Groundwood Books. p. 50. ISBN   978-1-55498-153-3.
  2. Stephen Harper (17 August 2006). "Call of the North". Yellowknife: Prime Minister of Canada. Archived from the original on 16 February 2013.