I found most of the book to be a bit dry for my taste. I was interested in a stronger narrative of the adventure, and instead the book dedicated a lot of space to describing Lewis' descriptions of flora and fauna. Not my cup of tea.

From background on Lewis' budding career as a young army officer to commission & co-command of the U.S. corps of discovery's historic expedition of what would become the United States. This book is filled with details on life in early 19th century North America, & the many challenges encountered by the people of the time. Actual excerpts from letters of correspondence, journal entrees, coupled with vivid details of day to day living makes this title a lively read. The shaping of the early United States, it's struggles, perils, defeats & triumphs are all illustrated in this finely written work by Mr. Stephen Ambrose. One detail about this book that I enjoyed were the journal entrees. Frequent misspelled words, sometimes the same word is spelled differently in the same paragraph. It gives a real sense of the era & education levels even amongst the privately educated. Even President Thomas Jefferson misspelled words in his letters to Cpt. Lewis. The focus is primarily on Cpt. Lewis before, during, & after the corps of discovery, but there's enough detail on co-captain (never official) W. Clark and the others to keep things interesting & balanced. Overall, this title is well worth reading, especially if you have an affinity for history.