Cape Cod: Henry David Thoreau: CosimoBooks.com

Cosimo's Bookstore

Shopping Cart

Cape Cod
by Henry David Thoreau

Price: $9.95 & eligible for FREE Super Saver
Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com

Editorial Review

Editorial Review

Hero to environmentalists and ecologists, and an insightful thinker on humanity's happiness, Henry David Thoreau was one of the strongest shapers of the American character in the 19th century. The writer himself once said, "I am eager to report the glory of the universe," and in this delightful work-not published till 1865, after his death-he regales us with tales of his time on Massachusetts' Cape Cod, to where he journeyed four times between 1849 and 1857. While still profoundly philosophical, this is Thoreau's lightest work, full of amusing and reflective anecdotes about the wildlife, human inhabitants, and fishing industry that characterized the island of the day. Charming and provocative, *Cape Cod* will be cherished by readers of modern philosophies and armchair travelers alike. Writer and philosopher HENRY DAVID THOREAU (1817-1862) was born in Concord, Massachusetts, and educated at Harvard University. His writings on human nature, materialism, and the natural world rank him among the most influential thinkers of American literature.

Product Details

Publisher: Cosimo Classics
ISBN-10: 1-60520-645-8
ISBN-13: 978-1-60520-645-5
Amazon.com Sales Rank #4855593
Published on: July 01, 2009
Number of items: 1
Binding: Paperback
202 pages

Customer Review

Jocelyn L.: MAKE SURE YOU BUY THE CORRECT EDITION

This is a comment about the edition rather than the book:

I bought this edition based on the review about the very helpful index. Please be careful about what edition you are actually buying. Many of these reviews are about different editions. I bought the BiblioLife paperback book with a picture of the green bicycle on the cover. I just received it and there is NO INDEX.

It looks like the original text from an original printing (with smaller physical dimensions) was photocopied page by page and put into this paperback book. This will do the trick but I am a little disappointed and wish I had bought a different edition.

It is confusing on amazon because when you click "look inside" it shows an index, with a tiny note saying the "look inside" refers to a different edition.

Harvest McCampbell: Our History, in a very readable format

Cape Cod, by Henry David Thoreau, a book review

Reading Cape Cod is like visiting with a distant relative or a fond acquaintance. Thoreau, who we have all heard about for most of our lives, rarely lectures or preaches on these pages. The chapters ramble through a Cape Cod of yesteryear and are comprised of articles and journal entries from Thoreau's walking holidays in 1849, 1850, 1855, and 1857. He describes the countryside, the tame and wild vegetation (complete with botanical names), architecture, people, food, farms, ships, fishing, economic activity, and everything else that presents itself to his view.

While Thoreau waxes poetic, and even philosophical, from time to time, this reads like a casual travel log, albeit from a very learned and intelligent scholar. The text includes quotes in a variety of languages, including Latin, Greek, and French, which are not all translated. Those looking for uncommon quotes are sure to find a few juicy tidbits. If you are looking for encouragement for reading the Christian Bible, exhortations against organized religion, or beautiful thoughts on nature and solitude, you will definitely find them here.

What I found most fascinating, is the ecological destruction that had already occurred in the area. Some native shellfish had been nearly wiped out, and "seed stock" was being imported from other areas. Trees no longer reached the height that they had originally grown, crop land was no longer as productive, and erosion was enough of a problem that the government had stepped in with programs and regulations. Thoreau documents that the people blamed "Providence"--meaning the Creator--when their crops or natural resources failed them. It seems it never occurred to them that their own actions might be detrimental to their environment.

Thoreau also documents the thinking about the ocean and its resources back in those days. Even he sees the ocean as nearly infinite and unlimited. This thinking is reflected in the fisheries and especially in the take on what they called "blackfish." The "blackfish" is a small whale, or perhaps a dolphin, with a blunt shaped head. Schools of these creatures are chased aground by men and boys in small boats. They are then murdered for their blubber and left to rot. Thoreau asks one of the "fishermen" if the meat is good to eat, and the fishermen replies that he prefers it to beef--when it is fresh. Thoreau's only comment on this waste is that the poor soil needs the nutrients that this "manure" supplies.

The edition that I read, which was arranged with notes by Dudley C. Lunt and was published by W. W. Norton & Company in 1951, contains a history of Cape Code in the appendix. This history, written by Thoreau, is rambling and disjointed, but worth reading. We all know that we have been sold a bill of goods in regards to Plymouth and the Pilgrims. A close reading of this history emphasizes just what a good sales job it was. The first thing that really grabbed me is the fact that three prior successful, permanent, European settlements had been established in North America (before Plymouth); one in Florida,--one I believe he said--in New Mexico, and one in Nova Scotia. (The one in Florida I have read something about before. When doing some research on the first Thanksgiving I ran across an article about a Florida town that claims it was celebrating Thanksgiving before the Pilgrims even thought of coming to the "New World.") Thoreau also documents early Viking and French visits to the area, and quotes texts that claim European people had been fishing in or near Cape Cod for many hundreds of years before "America" was "discovered."

Anyone researching the history of the East Coast, New England, or early contact between the two continents will find this a rewarding read. Thoreau sites the documents he quotes and others that may contain valuable information. However, you don't have to be a scholar or a student with a project to enjoy this book. Anyone with an interest in sustainability, history, botany, or the writing of Thoreau will be enriched by the time spent between these pages.

dizzy dean: A Beautiful Book

I have the Princeton Classic edition (1988; 2004), but the text is essentially the same. Thoreau is at his best here in his descriptions of nature and the people inhabiting this (then) difficult place. The book really is a paean to the Sea...Thoreau is awed by its power and beauty. Much of the work tends to be descriptions of the sea or its influence on the land. More than once he mentions that one is never far from the noise of the breakers or the winds. He also discusses man's influence on the land (usually negative), yet how mankind is still dwarfed by the power of the sea. Even if you are not a Thoreau fan, read this. It makes for a good read on a cold winter's night.

Howie: Travel to the cape with Thoreau

(My review is on Thoreau's Cape Cod rather than this specific edition).

While some literary critics seem to slight this work by Thoreau, saying that it is not as "powerful" as his other works, etc., I personally find this one very enjoyable. Sure, it does not have as much "philosophizing" as other books by him, but it is full of humor and very fun to read. The part where he describes the old man spitting into the hearth is particularly hilarious. The part about him sleeping in a lighthouse is also very funny. It lets us experience the more jovial side of Thoreau. This is probably one of the easiest to read among Thoreau's books.

Published posthumously, this volume is surprisingly consistent and complete (unlike "The Maine Woods" which is chopped into three different parts), it gives one the feel of walking along the entire cape, although the materials are quarried from several different trips. One only wish Thoreau had lived longer and had seen the West, imagine him taking a trip in the Sierra! Oh, well, meanwhile, we still have this one to enjoy.

Kevin M.: BEST EDITION AVAILABLE, BY FAR

This hardcover edition from Peninsula Press is unquestionably the best available edition of Thoreau's Cape Cod, for these reasons:

1) While all other editions are based on Thoreau's journal entries from only his first three visits to the Cape, this edition includes an epilogue compiling Thoreau's notes from his fourth and final visit, in which he traveled south to Chatham and Monomoy.

2) This is the only edition to translate the many, many Greek and Latin phrases Thoreau includes throughout the work, and it is also the only edition to provide illustrations, maps, and sidenotes in-text.

3) This is the only indexed edition ever created.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for fans of both Cape literature and Thoreau in general.