Safe Return Doubtful

British Literature – non fiction – Published 2018

Adam Weymouth is receiving plenty of deserved accolades for his most recent book, Lone Wolf: Walking the Line Between Civilization and Wildness, published last year, and which I enjoyed a lot. So much so, that I looked at his back catalogue and found this, which I think is even better.

Boooks about conservation are always informative, crammed with travelogue and scientific facts, but it is not often that they are rewarding reading experiences. Weymouth’s skill, observed here more so than in Lone Wolf, is that he lets the people along the Yukon tell their own stories, almost as if he has sat back, done no work himself, and them talk on the page.

His journey along the Yukon river (crossing the Canada/Alaska border) in a canoe is at the same time of year as the salmon are making their way along the river in the opposite direction, back inland. The book, as in the title, is about the salmon, their different species (including the King) and their habits, lifespan and habitat. The writing is very strong also on the places he visits and the influences, literary and historical, on visiting and loving the place; Jack London, Robert Service, and the early pioneers. One of my all time favourite books concerns such a pioneer, The Legend of John Hornby by George Whaley. It has been high on my places to visit for more than half a century. Maybe it was London’s White Fang, read as a 12 year old, that set it all off.. or a year or so later, To Build A Fire..

For this book, Weymouth was shortlisted for Young Writer of the Year in 2018, when he was in his early 30s. Though it may take some time, based on the gap between these two books, I am already looking forward to his next effort. In the meantime, he writes for the Guardian, so I will make do with that..

My GoodReads score 4 / 5