Book Brief: "The Canoe -- An Illustrated History"

Originally published May 22

Everything has a history, and the canoe is no exception. Jim Poling Sr. captures its past in a charming and beautifully illustrated book, "The Canoe: An Illustrated History" ($29.95, Key Porter).

The canoe in North America took the form of a skin-covered kayak in the Arctic, bark in the Midwest and cedar dugout in the Northwest.

Nothing did more to mix European and American Indian cultures in the Northeast.

Poling traces the history as well as the relationship of paddler to environment, the symbolism to a journey through life, and the power of personal discovery on outings.

The last chapter gives a quick introduction to buying a canoe.

-- Sharon Wootton

The Olympian Copyright 2001

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