I'm surprised to see there is not a well-established or permanent L&C topic on here, as there are many people interested.  I am fairly new to this interest, but became absorbed after a cruise/land journey that re-fired my interest.

I've read what I think is the finest novel of the journey, Undaunted Courage, and watched the PBS series done by Ken Burns.  I also read his (Ken Burns) writer's novel, Outwest, by Duncan Dayton,and a wonderful collection called The Ballads of Lewis & Clark by Michael J Barker.  Its a great trio of books to read together, and I have all 3, if you want to trade for them.

What is your favorite L&C book and why?

Dear Gene,

I usually read Historical Fiction. On a whim, I picked up I Should Be Extremely Happy in Your Company: A Novel of Lewis and Clark. I have to admit, I wasn't thrilled with the book but it did raise my interest in the subject. Have you read it? What bothered me was the voice he used for Sacajawea and the other Native Americans -- unbroken English and very confusing names. On the other hand, the story itself is fascinating. My husband read Undaunted Courage and highly recommends it, so it is one that I mean to read soon.

From the novel, a few questions arise for me: What evidence is there that Lewis actually commits suicide?  What kind of man was Sacagawea's husband? What happened to her son?

Unfortunately, I'm new to PBS, so I don't have many credits. I'll look into the books you recommend as I gain more, however!

Becky

One of the most fascinating books I ever bought was The Journals of Lewis and Clark, abridged.  Even that one volume book was 600 pages.  My husband would tell you that I kept poking him awake at night to say, "Wow, I've got to read you this part; you'll never believe this!  If they made a movie of this, no one would believe it!"  Reading this made me realize how valuable original sources are when learning about the past.