Jack London: Adventures, Ideas, and Fiction by James Lundquist (review)

Reviews 149 Moreover, he ties his whole book together with a thesis—that these poets write a similar kind of poetry typical of the Pacific Northwest. Certainly the book provides some exceptionally valuable close readings of individual poems. Pinsker begins by devoting a chapter to the influence of Theodore Roethke on Stafford, Hugo, and Wagoner. Then he gives each poet a chapter, reviewing the poets’ productions volume by volume. The conclu­ sion discusses the nature of Pacific Northwest poetry itself. The study of each poet’s development gives strength to this study. Bio­ graphical details, when not relevant, at least do not distract the reader from the poems themselves. Constantly Pinsker emphasizes the two things Stafford, Hugo, and Wagoner have in common: their relationship to Roethke and their relationship to the Pacific Northwest. If the volume has flaws, it might be that Pinsker does not treat the poets equally. Stafford receives forty-five pages while Wagoner receives only twentyfive . Moreover, one sometimes senses that Pinsker eulogizes the poets instead of studying them objectively. Seldom does he say anything negative about them. Also, Pinsker’s chapter on Wagoner is almost a reprint of an earlier article published in Salmagundi. He adds very little in the Twayne volume to what he said earlier. But perhaps the most interesting idea of Pinsker’s is the concept of a distinct Pacific Northwest poetry. He seems genuinely to believe that “such an animal” exists in the same sense of the Southern poetry of Tate and others. For those interested in the concept, this volume provides much to think about. PAUL VARNER Oklahoma Christian College Jack London: Adventures, Ideas, and Fiction. By James Lundquist. (New York: Ungar Publishing, 1987. 200 pages, $15.95.) Jack London “was always ready to travel to the ‘raw edges’of the world, and much of the power in his writing derives directly from the risks he took.” But it is also true, James Lundquist continues, that “every one of his adven­ tures was fueled by ideas that came out of his reading. . . .” London was more interested in books than in cannibals, Lundquist argues in this book, part of Ungar Publishing’s Literature and Life Series; London’stremendous output of fiction and essays must thus be viewed in the contexts of his famous adventures and his intellectual growth. Lundquist’svolume organizes its biographical-critical approach according to the three aspects of London’scareer mentioned in its title. It argues through­ out for the interrelationships of these aspects in the career of the American writer who was one of the most important and successful American writers of all time—and who remains the most popular American writer abroad. Lundquist’s book is a useful introduction; it is relatively brief, and yet it 150 Western American Literature successfully analyzes well-known but often under-explained aspects of Lon­ don’scareer. For example, Lundquist goes into more interesting detail than many I have read on such diverse topics as London’sparents, the cultural ramifications of the “Strenuous Age,” the cruise of the Snark, London’s attitude toward the Socialist Party, and his sportswriting. Lundquist offers as fair an account of London’sbehavior during the Mexican Revolution as I think we have. There are weaknesses. The most curious flaw is the down-playing of London’s late South Seas stories and their obvious Jungian flavor. These stories are much more significant than Lundquist even begins to convey. He uncriti­ cally accepts Joan London’s assessment of The Star Rover (1915) as London’s “last attempt at serious work,” which entirely ignores the stories of On the Makaloa Mat and The Red One, written during 1916. Lundquist’s critical chapters feature some odd groupings of works, as in the case of “Working Class Writer” (Chapter 5), which covers the South Seas fiction (1912,1919), Before Adam (1906), The Scarlet Plague (1915), The Star Rover, and London’s sportswriting. At times Lundquist takes London at his word on biographical facts and at times does not. Similarly, Lundquist is often critical of those who stress the sensational aspects of London’s life—but he spends his first few pages as well as many others detailing London’s swashbuckling. He...