Goodbye to a River (Paperback)

John Graves

ISBN 10: 0375727787 / ISBN 13: 9780375727788

Published by Random House USA Inc, New York, 2002

About this Item

Paperback. In the 1950s, a series of dams was proposed along the Brazos River in north-central Texas. For John Graves, this project meant that if the streams regimen was thus changed, the beautiful and sometimes brutal surrounding countryside would also change, as would the lives of the people whose rugged ancestors had eked out an existence there. Graves therefore decided to visit that stretch of the river, which he had known intimately as a youth.Goodbye to a River is his account of that farewell canoe voyage. As he braves rapids and fatigue and the fickle autumn weather, he muses upon old blood feuds of the region and violent skirmishes with native tribes, and retells wild stories of courage and cowardice and deceit that shaped both the rivers people and the land during frontier times and later. Nearly half a century after its initial publication, Goodbye to a River is a true American classic, a vivid narrative about an exciting journey and a powerful tribute to a vanishing way of life and its ever-changing natural environment. In this beloved modern classic, the author renders an account of three weeks spent on the Brazos River during the autumn of 1957. Part history, part memoir, and part travelogue, "Goodbye to a River" is a moving tribute to a vanishing world and its people. Illustrations. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780375727788

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Goodbye to a River (Paperback)
• Publisher: Random House USA Inc, New York
• Publication Date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0375727787
• ISBN 13: 9780375727788
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

In the 1950s, a series of dams was proposed along the Brazos River in north-central Texas. For John Graves, this project meant that if the stream’s regimen was thus changed, the beautiful and sometimes brutal surrounding countryside would also change, as would the lives of the people whose rugged ancestors had eked out an existence there. Graves therefore decided to visit that stretch of the river, which he had known intimately as a youth.

Goodbye to a River is his account of that farewell canoe voyage. As he braves rapids and fatigue and the fickle autumn weather, he muses upon old blood feuds of the region and violent skirmishes with native tribes, and retells wild stories of courage and cowardice and deceit that shaped both the river’s people and the land during frontier times and later. Nearly half a century after its initial publication, Goodbye to a River is a true American classic, a vivid narrative about an exciting journey and a powerful tribute to a vanishing way of life and its ever-changing natural environment.

About the Author

John Graves was born in Texas and educated at Rice University and Columbia University. He published a number of books, chiefly concerned with his home region, including Goodbye to a River, From a Limestone Ledge, Hard Scrabble, and Myself and Strangers. He died in 2013 in Glen Rose, Texas.