Barkskins: A Novel

"This book makes casual reference to eating veal broth and the honor killing of moose, as a prerequisite to marriage. OK, so Annie Proulx had me at veal broth, and I stayed for the moose in this epic, sprawling tale. Two indentured woodsmen arrive in “New France” (now Canada) and take divergent paths — one establishes a timber empire, the other marries a Mi’kmaw woman. Barkskins follows the descendants of these men over centuries, chronicling the march of Manifest Destiny, deforestation, progress, destruction, hope and greed. I kept saying, “I’m never going to finish this” 700-page epic, yet, in the end, I couldn’t put it down."