International best-selling author Wayne Johnston endorses new Bartlett biography Unchained Man

Years ago I picked up a book I could not put down. The Story of Bobby O’Malley was a coming of age tale set in my native Newfoundland. The characters were compelling, the atmosphere, evocative and familiar. The book has never left me.

Its author was Wayne Johnston, one of Canada’s most prolific and celebrated novelists. Years later Wayne wrote The Navigator of New York which features…Captain Bob Bartlett. When The Navigator was published, the Globe and Mail saw it as “the culmination (so far) of Johnston’s experiences as a writer and as a human being.” These are strong but worthy sentiments.

Because I have such respect for Wayne’s writing, I was honoured to have him offer the following endorsement of Unchained Man: The Arctic Life and Times of Captain Robert Abram Bartlett:

“Maura Hanrahan has written a fine book about one of Newfoundland’s most famous seamen and arctic explorers, Bob Bartlett. In Unchained Man—meticulously researched and finely written—she has come closer than any writer yet to solving the enigma of the great Bob Bartlett. From the haunting sinking of the Karluk to the epic struggle to reach the North Pole with Admiral Peary, Hanrahan depicts Bartlett as a flawed but extraordinary human being. This book is unforgettable, a must read for lovers of the literature of exploration and the still uncharted region of the Arctic.”

Unchained Man  was released last week and can be ordered online or purchased at bookstores across Canada. Meanwhile you can pick up Wayne Johnston’s new book, First Snow, Last Light featuring more of his larger-than-life characters.

Note: Unchained Man will be launched in Lethbridge, Alberta, 2-4pm, Chapters, Saturday, June 23. All are welcome. The book is priced at an affordable $21.95.