Great Books Set on River Journeys

a list by Peter, the avid reader who runs Flashlight Worthy

In looking through my shelves I realized I've read a good number of novels and memoirs that unfold along a river journey.

In thinking about it, rivers are an obvious setting for a good story. Both start out simply, grow as they follow a winding, circuitous path that frequently obscures what comes next... and end up at an inevitable destination.

If I ever write a novel, rest assured a river will figure in prominently.

onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Deliverance');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/038531387X'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Deliverance');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/038531387X'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">Deliverance by James Dickey Mention "Deliverance" and everyone thinks of the amazing Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Jon Voight movie from the 1972. Well, having seen the movie twice and read the book I'm here to tell you that the book is every bit as good. The suspense is slightly more... lyrical? But really -- it's just as good. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Deliverance');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Deliverance');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/038531387X'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 278 page paperback \|$10.20 \|73 reviews This book also appears on The Modern Library's 100 Greatest Novels of the 20th Century


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_African_Queen');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0316289108'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_African_Queen');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0316289108'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">The African Queen by C.S. Forester Look at that -- another book that's probably better known for its movie (Humphrey Bogart, Katherine Hepburn, 1951. Oh, and Bogart won the Oscar for it.) And yet, like "Deliverance," it started as a novel. Not a novel as good as "Deliverance" -- this might be one of those rare cases where the movie is better than the book -- but it's still a fun little read. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_African_Queen');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_African_Queen');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0316289108'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 256 page paperback \|$10.19 \|16 reviews


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Heart_of_Darkness');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0486264645'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Heart_of_Darkness');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0486264645'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad This one was made into a movie too -- just with a different title. For the very few people who don't know what I'm talking about, read this book and then watch "Apocolypse Now." Can you sense a theme here? Hollywood figured it out years ago -- stories that take place on river journeys are box office gold. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Heart_of_Darkness');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Heart_of_Darkness');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0486264645'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 72 page paperback \|$1.50 \|379 reviews This book also appears on The Modern Library's 100 Greatest Novels of the 20th Century


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_Adventures_of_Huckleberry_Finn');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0553210793'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_Adventures_of_Huckleberry_Finn');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0553210793'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain May I make a confession? I've never read this book. And I created this website -- a site dedicated to great books, for crying out loud. Personally, I think the blame should lie on the public school system. ;) onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_Adventures_of_Huckleberry_Finn');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/The_Adventures_of_Huckleberry_Finn');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0553210793'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 320 page paperback \|$5.95 \|357 reviews This book also appears on: Joyce Carol Oates' 10 Favorite Books Stephen King's 10 Favorite Books The 10 Most "Banned" Books of 2007


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Undaunted_Courage_Meriwether_Lewis_Thomas_Jefferson_and_the_Opening_of_the_American_West');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0684826976'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Undaunted_Courage_Meriwether_Lewis_Thomas_Jefferson_and_the_Opening_of_the_American_West');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0684826976'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West by Stephen Ambrose This is a much larger and more "serious" book than most on the list but it's still quite the page-turner. For those who've never read any Ambrose, he makes American History very accessible. You'll feel like you're reading a great novel. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Undaunted_Courage_Meriwether_Lewis_Thomas_Jefferson_and_the_Opening_of_the_American_West');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Undaunted_Courage_Meriwether_Lewis_Thomas_Jefferson_and_the_Opening_of_the_American_West');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0684826976'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 521 page paperback \|$11.56 \|344 reviews


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Running_the_Amazon');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/067972902X'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Running_the_Amazon');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/067972902X'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">Running the Amazon by Joe Kane This one breaks from the mold. It's a memoir, it wasn't made into a movie, and to be honest? Personally, I didn't find it quite as good as I was hoping it would be. Still, this guy paddled the Amazon. All 4,200 miles of it. In six months. Completely alone. What have you done lately? onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Running_the_Amazon');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Running_the_Amazon');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/067972902X'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 320 page paperback \|$10.17 \|29 reviews


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Mississippi_Solo_A_River_Quest');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0805059032'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Mississippi_Solo_A_River_Quest');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0805059032'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">Mississippi Solo: A River Quest by Eddy Harris I haven't read this book -- it was recommended for the list by my friend Tim. Tim paddled an inflatable kayak down the Zambezi river for 2 weeks, so when it comes to river journeys, I'll listen to his recommendations. What's the book about? Amazon says: Readers will be taken by the hand by an adventurer whose lifelong dream is to canoe the length of this mighty river, from Minnesota to New Orleans. The trip's dangers were legion for a Black man traveling alone, paddling from "where there ain't no black folks to where they still don't like us much." Barge waives loom large, wild dogs roam the wooded shores, and, in the Arkansas dusk, two shotgun-toting bigots nearly bring the author's dream to a bloody end. Sustaining him through the hard weeks of paddling were the hundreds of people who reached out to share a small piece of his challenge. "Mississippi Solo" is a big, rollicking, brilliant book, a wonderful piece of American adventure, and an unforgettable story of a man testing his own limits. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Mississippi_Solo_A_River_Quest');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Mississippi_Solo_A_River_Quest');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0805059032'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 256 page paperback \|$10.20 \|10 reviews


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Old_Glory_A_Voyage_Down_the_Mississippi');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0375701001'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Old_Glory_A_Voyage_Down_the_Mississippi');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0375701001'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">Old Glory: A Voyage Down the Mississippi by Jonathan Raban This is another recommendation, that I haven't read, from my friend Tim. The Amazon reviews are a bit mixed -- some feel it's a bit dated and some feel it's a bit biased. Make sure to read the reader reviews before purchasing. Amazon says: Jonathan Raban realizes a lifelong dream as he navigates the waters of the Mississippi River in a spartan sixteen-foot motorboat, producing yet another masterpiece of contemporary American travel writing. In the course of his voyage, Raban records the mercurial caprices of the river and the astonishingly varied lives of the people who live along its banks. Whether fishing for walleye or hunting coon, discussing theology in Prairie Du Chien or race relations in Memphis, Raban is an expert observer of the heartland's estrangement from America's capitals of power and culture, and its helpless nostalgia for its lost past. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Old_Glory_A_Voyage_Down_the_Mississippi');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Old_Glory_A_Voyage_Down_the_Mississippi');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0375701001'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 416 page paperback \|$10.20 \|18 reviews


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/RiverHorse_Across_America_by_Boat');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0140298606'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/RiverHorse_Across_America_by_Boat');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0140298606'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">River-Horse: Across America by Boat by William Least Heat-Moon Yet another book I haven't personally read. It was recommended by my favorite Uncle -- a very avid reader -- who said it was quite enjoyable. That said, the Amazon reviews are very mixed. Many loved it but those who've read his earlier books seemed to feel it was in need of some editing. Take a look at it on Amazon and decide for yourself. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/RiverHorse_Across_America_by_Boat');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/RiverHorse_Across_America_by_Boat');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0140298606'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 528 page paperback \|$11.20 \|95 reviews


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Goodbye_to_a_River_A_Narrative');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0375727787'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Goodbye_to_a_River_A_Narrative');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0375727787'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">Goodbye to a River: A Narrative by John Graves One more I haven't personally read. This one comes to us via a Flashlight Worthy fan, Linda Kay. It's a personal memoir, and local Texas history, told through the author's trip down a small Texas river soon to be changed by a dam project. In looking at the reviews on Amazon, it seems to be a special book. Reviewers invoked the name Steinbeck and compare the the writing to that of other "naturalist philosophers" such as Wallace Stegner, Edward Abbey, and John McPhee. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Goodbye_to_a_River_A_Narrative');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/Goodbye_to_a_River_A_Narrative');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0375727787'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 320 page paperback \|$10.17 \|21 reviews


onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/To_Your_Scattered_Bodies_Go');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0345419677'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">	onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/To_Your_Scattered_Bodies_Go');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0345419677'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;">To Your Scattered Bodies Go by Philip Jose Farmer This Hugo Award winner is the first in a very cool series called The Riverworld Saga. It's an utterly fun read, albeit a bit wacky (warning: it includes Nazis), so I'll let Amazon explain it... Amazon says: This is Philip José Farmer's unequaled tale about life after death. When famous adventurer Sir Richard Francis Burton dies, the last thing he expects to do is awaken naked on a foreign planet along the shores of a seemingly endless river. But that's where Burton and billions of other humans find themselves as the epic Riverworld saga begins. It seems that all of Earthly humanity has been resurrected on the planet, each with an indestructible container that provides three meals a day, cigarettes, alcoholic beverages, a lighter, and the odd tube of lipstick. But why? And by whom? That's what Burton and a handful of fellow adventurers are determined to discover as they construct a boat and set out in search of the river's source, thought to be millions of miles away. Although there are many hardships during the journey -- including an encounter with the infamous Hermann Goring -- Burton's resolve to complete his quest is strengthened by a visit from the Mysterious Stranger, a being who claims to be a renegade within the very group that created the Riverworld. The stranger tells Burton that he must make it to the river's headwaters, along with a dozen others the Stranger has selected, to help stop an evil experiment at the end of which humanity will simply be allowed to die. onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/To_Your_Scattered_Bodies_Go');" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> onClick="javascript: pageTracker._trackPageview('/to_amazon/Great_Books_Set_on_River_Journeys/To_Your_Scattered_Bodies_Go');" onMouseOver="window.status='http://amazon.com/dp/0345419677'; return true;" onMouseOut="window.status=''; return true;"> 224 page paperback \|$11.16 \|70 reviews This book also appears on The Riverworld Saga

Know any books we should add to the list above? .