The Fur Trade Gamble

North West Company on the Pacific Slope, 1800-1820

De: Lloyd Keith, John C. Jackson

Narrado por: Bill Nevitt

In an era of grand risk, fur moguls vied to command the northwest and China markets, gambling lives and capital on the price of beaver pelts, purchases of ships and trade goods, international commerce laws, and the effects of war.

©2016 Board of Regents of Washington State University (P)2017 Redwood Audiobooks

Bill Nevitt makes it so much better!

adventure, pacific-northwest, explorers, historical-setting, historical-places-events, historical-figures, historical-research, international-commerce

Although my usual turf and time involves the Northwest Territories of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the fur trade is a fascinating segment of history as is the Pacific Rim trade of the early nineteenth century. It is a very long and involved educational tool that I really wouldn't have been drawn to if it was only available in print, but it's in audio and narrated by Bill Nevitt so I had to have it! Some of the book could be boring lecture dull if not for the narrator's skills in maintaining the reader's interest. I don't mean to disparage the writing or material, but it is almost eleven hours!
I requested and received a free audio copy and plan to read it again later now that I know more than I did.

Deep and detailed history

The Fur Trade Gamble: North West Company on the Pacific Slope, 1800-1820..
History in great depth. This book is a superb addition to American/Canadian history, a serious work detailing the opening up of the northwest.
Good clear narration by Bill Nevitt makes this an easy book to listen too.
One suggestion to listeners have a map of the area handy, as sometimes it's difficult to picture different areas and rivers.
It made my listening easier.
I was given a free copy of this audio book at my own request, and voluntarily leave this review.

A great book for history buffs

I really enjoyed this book. I have been on a bit of a history book journey to learn more about our past. Living for almost 25 years in Washington State I knew fur trapping in the PNW and BC was important to the growth of the area but I knew nothing about the period.

This book takes place during the golden age for the fur trade.The Beaver pelt was highly prized in not America, but Europe primarily France. The book centers around the three Ws. Who, What and why and then starts to touch on the political side.

The book starts with the reasons why the fur trade went west. It was not just for the pelts, but also the search for the western passage ; a freshwater water way that transversed North America. They thought they found a river a time or two, and hoped this was it but it was a miss ( Frazier and Columbia ) they go through the trappers and the major business sponsors ,mainly in Quebec Providence ( Montreal ) and the risks they took as it was very easy to lose your investment and the company would lose money

The political side was interesting; the author hits on it regarding deals and treaties touching on the tensions between all the parties and things like favored nation status and its impact

The narrator Bill Nevitt does a nice job with the book. He has a pleasant voice and excellent dictation making it a easy listen

If you like history and how the the USA and Canada grew as nations this is a good listen I learned a lot and have a better understanding and respect for the men and the beavers that they trapped.

I was given this book to review and the opinions are mine and if I like it I will write so if I not I will state that as well

Very Interesting History

What made the experience of listening to The Fur Trade Gamble the most enjoyable?

So much of the history came from the traders logs as well as the documentation of the fur trader companies. It was amazing the companies stayed in business as little money was made.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Fur Trade Gamble?

There was a census made of the number of people that lived in the fort I believe it was and there were X number of white men, X number of native and the women who of course belonged to the fort.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

I wish the narrator had taken the time to learn to pronounce the names of the States, rivers, Indian tribes, etc of the Pacific North West before he read the book. I did not realize how much mispronouncing Oregon got on my nerves until this book.

Any additional comments?

Although the narrator was not ready to do this book the information is interesting. I love the history of my region and there were things I was not aware of. Although we all learned of Lewis and Clark and we knew fur trading was an important source of income, I did not realize just how many lives were lost in the process nor how much it factored into the settlement of the region. Even though I live in the town of Beaverton, I never think of the fur trade having been here.

Interesting

This is the first book I’ve read/listened to by these authors and I would listen to another. There was a lot a interesting information and their research effort showed.

This is the second book I’ve listened to by this narrator ( Bill Nevitt ) and I would listen to another. He read this content very well. A pleasant listen.

There are no explicit sex scenes, excessive violence or swearing.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review.
Please feel free to comment on whether you found my review helpful.