Oregon Books

My favorite picture book. Combines the beauty of the West with the saga of the pioneers.

This is a very good book to start out with if you are interested in the Oregon Trail. Tells a great story.

This is a terrific book for teaching kids about the rigors of life on the Oregon Trail. Most kids can identify with John Sager, who begins the book as a problem child, but then ends up leading his brothers and sisters to Oregon after his parents die. There is adventure and heartbreak, along with great historical information. I use this book when teaching about about the Westward Movement. Most of my students list this book as one of their favorites. Highly recommended!

It's already slightly out of date but it's still an essential guide to Forest Park hiking. Through this book I found some of the most amazing sights within the city of Portland. I'd never have hiked some of those trails without the book to give me the confidence. After all, if the book shows the trail who am I to question its existence?

"Oregon" is Book 4 of Dana Fuller Ross' magnificent "Wagons West" series and every bit as exciting and well written as the first three books. If you are a fan of historical fiction and/or the frontier days in the American West, then you will thoroughly enjoy this series of 24 books. (This is a review for the Unabridged version of "Oregon").

The first wagon train to cross the American continent and forge the Oregon Trail was now on its last leg of the journey west. Having wintered in the Rocky Mountains, the pioneers, numbering over 500, set out for the Oregon Territory. They had survived natural catastrophes, vicious Indian attacks, internal feuds, illness, as well as sabotage by agents employed by Great Britain and Russia who were determined to see the venture fail. Every member of the traveling community had much at stake. Many had lost everything they owned in the Panic of 1837. Oregon Territory was a vast land where there were almost limitless forests and fish and game were abundant. The rich earth was perfect for farming. The journey was financed by the US government and financiers like John Jacob Astor. The new settlers had each been promised a tract of 600 acres to begin life anew in the West.

Michael "Whip" Holt, and his blood brother, Cherokee warrior Stalking Horse led the train. They had been joined in Independence, Missouri by Lieutenant Colonel Lee Blake, the US Army's leading counterintelligence expert. He had been sent by President Martin Van Buren to help protect the wagon train from the British and Russian saboteurs. Russia and Great Britain were vying with the US for possession of the Oregon Territory. Both Holt and Blake, as well as many others, had married pioneer women they met during the trip.

On a lush green plain, at the juncture of the Columbia and Willamette Rivers, the wagon train came to its final halt. To the west and south lay vast expanses of forest, to the east were the hills that rose to form the Cascade Range, to the north, directly across the Columbia, was Fort Vancouver with the Union Jack fluttering in the breeze. Many weeks would pass before sites for homes, farms, ranches, offices, boatyards and lumber mills would be selected, the land cleared and buildings erected - but the settlers had arrived at last.

The author, writing with intelligence and depth, vividly brings history to life in "Oregon," as in the other books in the series. And the politics behind the settling of the West are fascinating. The plot becomes even more intriguing as the pioneers settle-in. New relationships are forged, the strife continues between England, Russia and the US, and a group of Russian immigrants joins the community. As one would expect, the novel is chock-full of adventure, hardship, courage, love, loss, tragedy and triumph. Many details have been taken from actual diaries and journals of early pioneers. These "Wagons West" novels are among the best historical fiction I have read. Very highly recommended!

JANA

The first thing I want to say is that I like the way the purple border of the front cover of this From Sea to Shining Sea compliments the photograph of the Portland skyline with Mt. Hood in the background. The second thing is that since my brother lives in Oregon I have had the opportunity to visit there quite a few times in the past couple of years and driving up the Columbia River Gorge and stopping to see the various waterfalls and other sights is one of the most enjoyable trips I have taken (it helps when just driving along the highway is pretty impressive). In this informative volume Terry Miller Shannon introduces young readers to the Beavers State, covering not only the state's rich history and unique attractions, but also its geography, government, and people.

The diverse geography of Oregon is covered in the second chapter, where Shannon lays out six distinct land regions: the Coast Range, the Willamette Valley, the Klmath Mountains, the Cascade Mountains (which includes Crater Lake), the Columbia Plateau, and the Basin and Range Region. Obviously the lakes and rivers section has a lot to cover, and Shannon makes a distinction between the climate in eastern and western Oregon thanks to the Cascade Mountains. The longest chapter is always the third in these books, which is where the history of the state is covered. The arrival of first the Europeans and then Lewis and Clark establishes the importance of the region to the fur trade. Following the missionaries that arrived in the early 1840s, the establishment of the Oregon Trail, which should resonate with any young reader who has ever played the popular and educational computer game. Other sections are devoted to statehood, the discovery of gold, and the struggles with the Nez Perce tribe. The 20th century section highlight how the New Deal transformed Oregon, the internment of Japanese-Americans in camps in eastern Oregon, and the emphasis on the environment in modern Oregon (I remember a greeting card where the state's governor invited you to visit any other state and the highway north from California gets to Washington by going around and rather through Oregon; no wonder we thought of the place as a great place to live).

After touching on the three branches of state government, the key part of chapter four is a tour of Salem, the state capital. A map of the downtown area shows not only the State Capitol but also several museums and Salem Riverfront Park, where you will find both the Riverfront Carousel and A.C. Gilbert's Discovery Village (a sidebar explains why Gilbert was known as "the man who saved Christmas"). The final chapter looks at what working people in Oregon do and provides a recipe for Stuffed Spuds. Then Shannon takes us on a tour of Oregon, starting on the eastern part of the state, but devoting the most space to the Oregon coast, the Portland area, and the Willamette Valley. Color photographs highlight some of the best sights to see, from the peak of Mount Hood and Fort Clatsop National Memorial to Benson Bridge at Multnomah Falls and the End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.

The back of the book begins with an Oregon Almanac, two pages of statistics, productions and state symbols (but which only shows one side of the state flag). There is also a Timeline of Oregon state and U.S. history, a Gallery of Famous Oregonians that highlights Matt Groening, Linus Pauling, and Picabo Street, and a Glossary of key terms. Young students can turn to the list of webs sites, books, and addresses provided For More Information, or they can check out all of the sidebars throughout the book. Extra! Extra! blocks tell about the discovery of Oregon Caves National Monument and what is really the tallest building in Salem, while the Who's Who in Oregon ones provide mini-biographies of the likes of Henry Villard. Famous Firsts include the first settlement west of the Rockies, and we also learn What's in a Name? explains that Salem is a variation of the Arabic and Hebrew words for "peace." So there is plenty of information here for students assigned to report on the Beaver State for class. From here we go to the other bank of the Columbia River to tour Washington, the last of the 48-continental states on our itinerary.

I was pleasantly surprised!!! I am a teacher who is in search of good information on Oregon, Oregon Trail, Applegate Trail, etc. It was with great relief and joy that I opened the pages of this book to find almost everything I need to complete my unit on Oregon. The book lays information out in a well organized and easy to follow format. Thank you!...it makes my "life" much easier.

Great resource!

Kathleen Thompson's "Portrait of America" series is an indispensible teaching tool for instructors of American history and American studies. This selection, "Oregon", is no exception. With generous illustrations to accompany the straightforward text, "Oregon" will stir the imagination and reason of any student. I highly recommend it.

This is a fine read. Gets a liitle redundant with the 4 stories compiled together. But, very enjoyable.

Oregon Byways is an excellent book. The trail descriptions are extremely accurate, concise and helpful. I liked the photographs because they give a perspective on a drive. The list of resources, parks and places of interest in the back of the book is invaluable. I wish I had time to go on all the drives. Good job.