Synopsis
"Not to be missed" — Kirkus Reviews
One hundred years ago a young man named Jan Welzl left his home in Europe and headed for the Far North. He rode off in a horse-drawn cart, traded the cart for a sled pulled by reindeer, and was gone for thirty years. Like Robinson Crusoe, he turned adversity into adventure and the wilderness into a dream, where anything could happen and anyone could be a hero.
In this reissue of one of his earlier works, award-winning author/artist Peter Sís explores the life of Czech folk hero Jan Welzl and re-creates his extraordinary Arctic odyssey. Mixing fact with legend, he paints the fascinating story of a little-known explorer and the native people who became his teachers and his friends. With maps, storyboards, panoramas, and even a myth told in pictographs, Peter Sís has concocted a visual feast.
Publishers Weekly
A Small Tall Tale from the Far Far North by Peter S s chronicles the life of Czech folk hero Jan Welzl who, as legend has it, left his home 100 years ago headed for the Arctic illustrated with maps, storyboard vignettes (relating how the explorer enlarged a cave, for example, built a kayak and made a tent) and stunning panoramic views of the spare landscape. (Apr.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.