Champlain's Dream

by David Hackett Fischer

Hardcover, 2008

Status

Available

Call number

F1030 .F54

Genres

Publication

Simon & Schuster (2008), Edition: 1, 848 pages

Description

Traces the story of Quebec's founder while explaining his influential perspectives about peaceful colonialism, in a profile that also evaluates his contributions as a soldier, mariner, and cultural diplomat.

Media reviews

Vermont Historical Society

David Hackett Fischer has produced a dense, learned, and readable
tour de force. Through the life and activities of Samuel de Champlain
narrated in Champlain’s Dreams, Fischer has painted a detailed portrait
of an important i gure in the story of French colonization of North
America and who,

Fischer believes, has important lessons to impart in
the complex times of the early twenty-i rst century.

Show Less

— 5 more

Histoire Canada

Dans cet imposant ouvrage, David Hackett Fischer propose une biographie de Samuel de Champlain (vers 1570–1635), certainement la plus complète à ce jour. Le Rêve de Champlain porte évidemment sur ce grand navigateur et explorateur, le fondateur de la ville de Québec, qui a fêté son 400e

anniversaire en 2008.

Show Less

Le Devoir

Il faut mettre d'autres bémols. Le Champlain présenté comme un «humaniste» avant-gardiste en sol nord-américain, comme un fondateur «tolérant» envers les Français protestants et les cultures et croyances des Amérindiens, ne concorde pas bien avec le discours offert dans ses

écrits.
(....)
En un mot, disons que le travail de recherche et de documentation accompli par David Hackett Fischer est colossal.

Show Less

The Globe and Mail

Champlain's Dream is history in the grand style, a blend of the old-style narrative about great men and amazing deeds, and the newer contextual narratives of race, social currents, and localities - or what Prof. Fischer in conversation in Ottawa yesterday called the "third way" in history.

New York Times

Fischer responds to this challenge the way any careful researcher would. He scours the record, archaeological as well as historical, to find out what we can reliably conclude, and then fills in the holes with some informed speculation. Because he is a rigorous historian, not a historical novelist,

he is always scrupulous about drawing a firm line between facts and inferences, and he presents a wide variety of views. He even includes appendixes to examine competing theories about Champlain’s birth date, the scene of some of his most famous victories, the accuracy of his published writings and other matters of dispute.

Show Less

Journal of Historical Biography

To a large extent, Fischer’s success is based upon his conviction that history ought to be written according to the model established by Herodotus, the father of history. Like Herodotus, Fischer believes that history is “a free and open discipline” (9) and that it is best understood by

getting one’s feet on the ground. In large measure, this is a successful book because the author travelled far and wide in order to put himself into Champlain’s footsteps. By doing this, and by grounding his biography firmly in the religious and political contexts of the time, Fischer is able to overcome the paucity of available source material. This bold methodology leads to the most comprehensive and insightful biography of Champlain to date.

Show Less