Journey Back to Lumberjack Camp

"This is so unfair, " laments Gus McCarty, a twelve-year-old who first struggles at school with an obnoxious bully named Al, and then is reeled back in time to a lumberjack camp with an equally troublesome acquaintance named Alex. Added to Gus' dilemma are a camp full of rugged lumberjacks who think the youngster needs to know a few things about being a real 'jack. Gus' misadventures in lumberjack camp lead him from hilarious encounters with a three-legged cat named Betty, an army of lice and bedbugs in the bunkhouse, to a more serious and chilling escape from a cougar. But even in his misery, everything is not all trouble for Gus. Tommy, the camp's Irish barn boss, and Miss Addie, the camp cook, befriend the boy, and even the meanest 'jack in the camp, Rat-hole Andy, comes to Gus' defense. "Journey Back to Lumberjack Camp " has much to say about the lumbering era in the 1800s western Great Lakes region, rich in detailed historical information, with a story and cast of characters that will keep readers smiling long after they have finished the last chapter.

"This is so unfair, " laments Gus McCarty, a twelve-year-old who first struggles at school with an obnoxious bully named Al, and then is reeled back in time to a lumberjack camp with an equally troublesome acquaintance named Alex. Added to Gus' dilemma are a camp full of rugged lumberjacks who think the youngster needs to know a few things about being a real 'jack. Gus' misadventures in lumberjack camp lead him from hilarious encounters with a three-legged cat named Betty, an army of lice and bedbugs in the bunkhouse, to a more serious and chilling escape from a cougar. But even in his misery, everything is not all trouble for Gus. Tommy, the camp's Irish barn boss, and Miss Addie, the camp cook, befriend the boy, and even the meanest 'jack in the camp, Rat-hole Andy, comes to Gus' defense. "Journey Back to Lumberjack Camp " has much to say about the lumbering era in the 1800s western Great Lakes region, rich in detailed historical information, with a story and cast of characters that will keep readers smiling long after they have finished the last chapter.

Award winning, Great Lakes author Janie Lynn Panagopoulos is a historian who shares her love of the subject with readers both young and the young-at-heart. Writing professionally for over 34 years, Janie’s passion lies in detailed historical research where she spends 3-8 years uncovering academic facts in libraries, museums, and archives worldwide, to help bring history alive for her readers. However, she doesn't stop with just the academic viewpoint; she actually dresses in period costumes of the era she is studying as she strives to experience what it might be like to live the life of those she is learning about. Whether it is drudging through the snow on snowshoes or following behind a dog sled, to studying with traditional Native Americans or participating in archaeological digs, she did it all. Her research model is to not just read about the past, but experience it both physically and emotionally, to help bring history alive in her writing. Here is but a sampling of Janie's Journeys: trekking along a military supply road in a wagon train, cooking over wood stoves or an open fire to experiment with historic recipes, cutting down trees, milking cows and learning the jobs of the lumberjacks, hiking ancient trails, canoeing thousands of miles along fur trade routes, and living on uninhabited islands with no modern comforts of home. Panagopoulos' books are written for 3rd-8th grade readership, but adult readers have also enjoyed and learned from her experiences and research. This book is used throughout schools in North America to teach a better understanding of the Lumber era of the 1800s. This book is used by Homeschooling teachers as a Social Studies/History focus on lumberjack and the era of lumbering.