This is a remarkable work by a young man who was held captive for several years by a tribe of Native Americans on the coast of Vancouver Island during a time when European vessels visited these shores only once every few years. As a result, the account provides a unique insight into the lifestyle of these people prior to European intervention.

I read the work while visiting the area and found it irresistable. The natives have many surprising habits, including a preference for rotting rather than fresh whale blubber (this creates many difficulties for our protagonist) and a penchant for midnight raids on slumbering neighbors. Jewitt is a good writer and his dated prose has a tendancy to amuse the reader. He does a good job both of mentioning the details of every day existence and of capturing the emotional bonds he develops with other members of the tribe. The end of Jewitt's adventure leaves the reader deeply saddened, sharing the conflicting emotions that he himself was torn by.

As it is no longer out of print, I intend to give copies to a variety of friends with interests in anthropology, Native Americans, and adventure in general.

This book, besides being interesting in itself for the factual historical information it portrays, is one hell of an adventure read. Jewitt's descriptions of the Nootka native life 200 years ago, couched in the rather flowery descriptive language common to the time is both entertaining and exciting reading. His unruly companion in slavery, Thompson, the unusual dietary habits of the Nootka, and the adventures they had fixing themselves in Nootka society all add up to a tale that would be an excellent work of fiction. The fact that his tale is true makes the book that much better-a "must read" for all interested in the record of early frontier history as well as literary entertainment alone.