"There, high above the plains he had loved and the river he had so often followed, Lame Beaver, the man of many coups, found his rest. He died at the end of an epoch, the grandest the western Indians were to know." --Centennial (182)“My name is Pasquinel; I come to you unafraid.” I loved this gutsy French trapper who travels by canoe along the Platte River and hikes up the Rocky Mountains to hunt beaver or to trade with the Native Americans for pelts, which he then sells in St. Louis. I will never forget the rush I felt when, shot in the back by a Pawnee arrow, Pasquinel coolly returns fire, kills his attackers and lives with the pain of an arrow-point in his back for the rest of his life.Michener’s epics were my guilty pleasures. I read him as a teenager, and I remember how riveted I was through 1,100 pages that spanned from prehistoric times to the 1970s. I started with the formation of the earth, worked my way through the dinosaurs; the bison; the Creek; the Pawnee; the trappers; the pioneers; the ranchers; the cowboys; the farmers; and the developers. I counted coup with Cheyenne braves; endured mass slaughters of the Native Americans and of the buffalo; I traveled the Santa Fe trail; and I wrestled with tensions over how the land and the water will be used. The setting is the fictional town of Centennial Colorado, which got its name because it was incorporated in 1876. Once humans are finally introduced, after about page 90 into the book (believe me the introduction is still exciting), there are hundreds of characters who interact over 200 years. Lame Beaver is the first human character, while Paul Garrett, his descendant, runs for governor of Colorado in the 1970’s.Some of “Centennial’s” many characters include: Lame Beaver-- A warrior of the tribe known as ‘Our People’ (the Cheyenne/Arapaho). His daughter, Clay Basket, will intermarry with the Whites. Alexander McKeag-- A principled Scotsman who is on the run from his homeland, McKeag has a gift for language and becomes Pasquinel’s partner. They share a love of Clay Basket, the beautiful daughter of Lame Beaver.Levi Zendt-- A Mennonite from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, who flees his community after being shunned and, with his bride, heads for Oregon—until Colorado interrupts.Hans Brumbaugh The German immigrant who farms land along the Platte and who becomes known for his potato farming. Brumbaugh refuses to be chased out of the farming industry by the men of the cattle company, and he learns how to harness the water of the Platte.Chapter titles give a hint as to what may happen: The Commission; The Land; The Inhabitants; The Many Coups of Lame Beaver; The Yellow Apron; The Wagon and the Elephant; The Massacre; The Cowboys; The Hunters; A Smell of Sheep; The Crime; Central Beet; Drylands; and November Elegy.My Conclusion (A Modest Proposal for High School Education)Though I have probably outgrown this book, it was a glorious read when I was a teenager. American Historian David McCullough recently lamented the abysmal historical knowledge of today’s young college students. My modest proposal would be to ditch the boring textbooks and have highschool kids read James Michener, James Clavell, and Herman Wouk-style historical epics. Rather than slugging their way through classic literature (that they are too immature to appreciate), the students should read adventure books, which are easier and more exciting to read. They would learn history the way it should be learned—through the power of story and through heroism. It worked for me. I probably would not give it 5 stars if I were to re-read it today, but "we'll always have Centennial, Ilsa"-- and James Michener prepared us for Proust. I have also reviewed another fine Michener novel, "Hawaii":http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...November 25, 2012
I could even consider giving this book the highest rating, but I held back because it was a little dated and a little awkwardly heavy handed in parts. Basically I always wondered if people just had Michener books on their shelves because they were long and impressive looking, or if they were actually good and engrossing reads. I started The Source a while ago, but gave up when I got close to the present day. I found the stuff about ancient times really interesting, but the more modern it got the more it lost me. I feel I should give it another chance. Centennial was interesting all the way through, partially because even the more modern stuff was still the old west, and it's hard to make the old west boring. I think it is a little ridiculous to start the book in dinosaur times. I know he wants to be thorough, but the stuff about the animals just isn't nearly as compelling as the stuff about the people. The reader also needs to suspend his disbelief just a bit, as sometimes the characters throughout history are a little too convieniently linked to each other. But for the most part, the story really does flow along nicely, the characters are compelling, the plot twists are well played, and he does evoke the setting very well. I actually felt myself getting emotionally wrapped up in these characters, and feeling sad when they died, which doesn't always happen to a reader. It's funny the way some of this is dated. I find it crazy that a normal person from the east coast in 1973 would never have eaten a taco, or had a coors. I guess the world has changed, but man, that seems ridiculous. In fact the whole framework he puts this story in is a little silly, framing each chapter as a project for a magazine in New York. I think Michener could have come up with a better structural device than that. In fact, that's why I gave it four stars, in retrospect. But anyway, If you want a book that's evocative of the west, the plains in particular, I highly recommend this one.
What do You think about Centennial (1987)?
Wow...What a marathon of a book. For years a friend has been suggesting I read Centennial, and now I see why. Michener has created lush stories with engaging characters. With each chapter, I became friends with a new set of characters and when they would show up in later chapters, it felt good to see them again. It is apparent that the book is well researched, although only rarely does Michener go overboard with showing you how much he knows. This is one of those books I did not want to put down at night, and in the morning, I picked it up as soon as my eyes adjusted to the light.Centennial missed a perfect score from me for two reasons. There are two chapters early on which go into exhaustive depth on the geological and living histories of the west. Some information would have been okay, but there was just too much for me. Then, as the story entered the 20th century, the storytelling began to fall apart a bit. I just didn't care as much about the characters, and there were too many stories being told at the same time. Oddly enough, with over 1000 pages, the end felt a bit rushed. Great care was taken earlier in the book to craft the stories. Towards the end, I got the feeling that it was time to "wrap it up" but Michener had too much more to say. Perhaps this could have been two books, then Michener could have fully explored all of his time periods fully.Even with the drawback chapters, I would highly recommend Centennial to anyone. Even if they felt intimidated by the page count, I would say to just not worry about it, the story will fully support you through the journey.
—Greg
Well, I finally got around to reading not the paperback but the hefty 1974 Random House hardcover --holding the book steady and unright was a nightmare. Yes, I have delicate little hands. This novel is pure unadulterated ambitious Michener -- and great fun. Paleontology, horses, the Oregon Trail, Colorado, Indian tribes, sugar beets, the ranchers and the cattle industry, guns, the railroads. A Colorado saga, and the narrative does not flag. I think it's one of his best, but not better that The Source.Of course it's not great literature; don't expect it to be, it's Michener. And if you run across the paperback, my god, read that instead.
—Maria
An epic novel about the settlement of Colorado and the westward pioneer movement. It was a lot of work to get through, but I did. The book goes into some detail about the tragedy of the American frontier killing the buffalo off so as to kill the Native Americans by depriving them of their food source. It shows the pioneering spirit and drive that a lot of people had to find a prosperous life in Colorado. Being from Utah, I was very well aware of the westward movement in terms of Mormon history, but I wasn't familiar with the other pioneer stories. A lot of the book focuses on cattle ranching fortunes and the tough grit and determination it took to be a cowboy. It also showcases some of the early criminals and the terror they brought to the settlements. One of the highlights to the book for me was learning about the early French trappers. I didn't really know anything about them and their stories which led them to the same place that my ancestors would go to later as the first official settlers. All in all, this book wasn't as inspiring as the other Michener novels, but I'm a HUGE Michener fan and I wish only he'd written more of these educational historical books.
—Jessica
