Though born and raised in England, explorer HUDSON STUCK (1865-1920) epitomized the adventurous New World spirit of the American West at its closing. Drawn by the wide-open spaces, Stuck, an Episcopal priest and champion of "muscular Christianity," volunteered in 1904 to serve as the archdeacon of the Yukon; his spiritual domain encompassed 250,000 square miles of interior Alaska. In this dramatic 1914 work, Stuck draws upon his eight years of continuous travels in this "great, wild country" to paint an exhilarating portrait of a rugged land and the people who lived there. This is no mild tale of priestly ministering or zealous missionary work-Stuck all but eschews discussion of his actual work to regale us with tales of the "gentle aboriginal population" and "some of the hardiest and most adventurous white men in the world," and warns against "low-down whites" with no respect for native culture or the sanctity of the land. With this beautiful and untamed land again threatened by encroaching development, this century-old book remains a fresh and vital read. ALSO AVAILABLE FROM COSIMO: Stuck's Ascent of Denali