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In searching for the answers and the reasons for the fire, MaCLean is also staring his own impending death in the face and trying to come to some resolution about what life means and what value it holds if one dies young or in contrast, such as MacClean, lives to an old age. There are two sections of the book in which the story gets caught up in long detailed explainations of distances between inviduals at the fire, rates of movement per hour, the angle of the terrain, and scientific analysis. This fact adds an extra depth to the story, that might otherwise be lacking if it were told by a young man. Furthermore, MaClean has lived a long life after starting out as a woodsman, going on to be a successful teacher and then writer. Although this book at times comes close to greatness, it never quite gets there. Again, this may well be because MaCLean did not oversee the final form of the book.MaCLean was obviously a talented writer and regardless of the book's flaws, I appreciate the efforts he made in trying to tell us this story. Perhaps this is because it was published posthumously and at least to some degree, however small, is not the finished product MaCLean himself would have presented as a final, complete work. His goodwill and charm reveal themselves to us throughout the narrative.But the book is uneven.
MaCLean is also not successful in fully reconciling the death of his wife with those of the firefighters. We learn something about America in the process. The Mann Gulch Fire, which resulted in the deaths of 12 smokejumpers (firefighters who parachute from planes)and a park ranger, is certainly a compelling topic and Norman MaCLean seems particularly qualified to tell us the story, having fought fires himself as a young man in the deep woods of the west. These are certainly vital aspects of the story, but they're drawn out and although MaClean competently breaks this information down for the reader it disrupts the book's flow and becomes at times --to me at least--quite boring. As MaCLean works his way through his material and interviews various participants and experts he exposes the culture of the deep woods and the life of some of the people who live there. MaCLean can also be engaging and humorous and I thought how wonderful it must have been to have been his student, neighbor or friend and had the opportunity to sit with him and have a chat. He tries to draw meaning between the two, but because he hasn't really established his wife as an important element of the story the result seems hurried and rushed. It made me want to visit Mann Gulch and spend a day there wondering about the fire myself.
I give the work 4 out of 5 stars (rather than the almost deserving 5) only because, had he lived to finish it, it would have been as refined as his other published works.(Spoiler Alert: don't read any further if you would like to discover for yourself by reading the book.).Common for all humanity is the desire to live and be remembered, though we all will meet our unique end. Maclean is able to lend unique perspective and commentary to the lives and deaths of these young men because as a native of Montana, he was also in the USFS and fought forest fires during the early 20th century. This book is a study by Norman Maclean and associates on the circumstances and details of the Mann Gulch disaster of 1949 where all but three USFS Smokejumpers died in a "blowup" wildfire. Maclean relates the inevitability of dying, especially the anguish of dying young, to the passion of the Christ. His background in literature brings the tragic events of the fire and actions of these young men to life in heartbreaking detail. The revelations from this study serve to ensure that these men did not die needlessly and that lessons are learned that have saved (and will save) lives of future firefighters.I'll not spoil the read for you by saying that there is a higher theme that slowly comes to light during the course of the story, a theme that hits like a ton of bricks in the final pages of the book. Maclean's background as son of a devout Presbyterian minister, his talents for relating the ordinary to the divine, and his humility, enable him to tackle such deep subject matter with respect and solemnity. As Christians honor Christ's sacrifice for us, Maclean so honors the tragic deaths of these young men whose last throes were played out amidst the passion of a mountain wildfire.
Reading this book is as close to being there as we will ever get - and Norman Maclean is the perfect author to combine factual reporting with the emotional conflicts of men facing death. His son, John Maclean, is following in his footsteps and has three excellent books which you should read if you are interested in wildland fires and the dangers faced by those who fight them.
One of those rare books that you will remember intensively for months after reading it.
He simply and obsessively wants to get at the truth and to pay homage to the young men who inspired him to unearth and write their story. In an age when everything seems to lean toward the superficial, Norman Maclean's "Young Men and Fire" is a real miracle of writing: depth, honesty, intelligence, clarity, compassion, courage. And Maclean himself comes through as a sensitive, intelligent, caring, deeply honest, matter-of-fact, no-nonsense, and finally modest man, whom I'm sorry I shall never have the chance to meet. Maclean's single-minded devotion to his subject, to getting at the truth (insofar as one ever can), in an articulate, literate, sensitive, and finally all-encompassing way, is truly impressive. I found myself swept along in this remarkable book as the young men about whom he writes were swept away by the Mann Gulch fire -- and while that may sound gruesome, it's a testament to the power and integrity, and even majesty, of Maclean's writing: He really feels his way inside this tragic story and takes you along with him, and he does it for all the right reasons and with the precision of both the scientist and the poet. I can't say enough about this book; I can't possibly do it justice. You just have to read it.I'm only sorry that Maclean is no longer alive so I can tell him what a spectacular achievement this book is.
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