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Last of the Breed
Here is the kind of authentically detailed epic novel that has become Louis L’Amour’s hallmark. It is the compelling story of U.S. Air Force Major Joe Mack, a man born out of time. When his experimental aircraft is forced down in Russia and he escapes a Soviet prison camp, he must call upon the ancient skills of his Indian forebears to survive the vast Siberian wilderness. Only one route lies open to Mack: the path of his ancestors, overland to the Bering Strait and across the sea to America. But in pursuit is a legendary tracker, the Yakut native Alekhin, who knows every square foot of the icy frontier—and who knows that to trap his quarry he must think like a Sioux.
371 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1986
About the author
Louis L'Amour
800 books3,083 followersLouis Dearborn L'Amour was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels, though he called his work "frontier stories". His most widely known Western fiction works include Last of the Breed, Hondo, Shalako, and the Sackett series. L'Amour also wrote historical fiction (The Walking Drum), science fiction (The Haunted Mesa), non-fiction (Frontier), and poetry and short-story collections. Many of his stories were made into films. His books remain popular and most have gone through multiple printings. At the time of his death, almost all of his 105 existing works (89 novels, 14 short-story collections, and two full-length works of nonfiction) were still in print, and he was "one of the world's most popular writers".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,219 reviews
October 6, 2021
Major Joseph Makatozi ( Joe Mack) of the United States Air Force is brought down illegally by the Soviets in the last days of that nation's existence, between Alaska and Russia in international air, on the frigid Bering Sea and this is the last time the pilot feels the essence of tranquility, on the contrary harsh darkness permeates the Siberian landscape were the prisoner is brought. A Sioux Indian and proud of his heritage he has some Scottish blood also, treated roughly by the KGB and soldiers in a brutal stockade but (this is fiction ) the former athlete literally pole vaults over the high fence and escapes to the amazement of guards. The endless yet
electric , (one against a whole nation) pursuit by the Russians authorities is the main story of the lively novel, a bit far-fetched still that is the way we like them. Hunted the pilot regenerates back to his warrior ancestors, living as they did killing their enemy without mercy, he expects the same treatment. Day after day, week after week , months pass and still the agony continues while the extreme cold freezes the bones, constant hunger weakens the soul, the body becomes a big pile of hurt in this enormous land , the agony persists a joyless life he must endure , and never leave any evidence the foreigner was ever here, one little mistake and back to the torture ...how can the major reach the sea his goal and then cross it to Alaska and keep his stomach filled with the little food he finds. The American has enough trouble getting to the other side of the numerous wide rivers in the territory, staying concealed in the many mountains and forests of Siberia. Sometimes the terrain seems like a gigantic ice box and he the unwanted stranger. Colonel Arky Zamatev the mastermind of the plot to get vital information from Joe Mack, technology will conquer everything can never give up the quest his career and maybe life depends on success. Bringing the legendary tracker Alekhim to find the resourceful elusive fugitive, he always gets the man.. His ways are savage yet effective no one asks any questions, the results are everything. However Joe meets a few inhabitants that aren't afraid of the mighty state, most are criminals to Russia, and not political in nature, want to be left alone and live in their shall we say, not quite conventional manner to some but, however what matters is these are basically good
people who will help him... their dislike of the government makes for temporary friendship which does not and cannot last, expediency is the law of the land. Nevertheless in one of the major's hideouts the attractive pilot starts a romance with a beautiful lady and she does not mind this improbable event, still he needs to travel quickly for the consequences of delay aren't pleasant . For anyone who likes interesting high adventure and not to take it seriously, the novel won't disappoint fans of this type ... the others...well there are millions of books in the world.
electric , (one against a whole nation) pursuit by the Russians authorities is the main story of the lively novel, a bit far-fetched still that is the way we like them. Hunted the pilot regenerates back to his warrior ancestors, living as they did killing their enemy without mercy, he expects the same treatment. Day after day, week after week , months pass and still the agony continues while the extreme cold freezes the bones, constant hunger weakens the soul, the body becomes a big pile of hurt in this enormous land , the agony persists a joyless life he must endure , and never leave any evidence the foreigner was ever here, one little mistake and back to the torture ...how can the major reach the sea his goal and then cross it to Alaska and keep his stomach filled with the little food he finds. The American has enough trouble getting to the other side of the numerous wide rivers in the territory, staying concealed in the many mountains and forests of Siberia. Sometimes the terrain seems like a gigantic ice box and he the unwanted stranger. Colonel Arky Zamatev the mastermind of the plot to get vital information from Joe Mack, technology will conquer everything can never give up the quest his career and maybe life depends on success. Bringing the legendary tracker Alekhim to find the resourceful elusive fugitive, he always gets the man.. His ways are savage yet effective no one asks any questions, the results are everything. However Joe meets a few inhabitants that aren't afraid of the mighty state, most are criminals to Russia, and not political in nature, want to be left alone and live in their shall we say, not quite conventional manner to some but, however what matters is these are basically good
people who will help him... their dislike of the government makes for temporary friendship which does not and cannot last, expediency is the law of the land. Nevertheless in one of the major's hideouts the attractive pilot starts a romance with a beautiful lady and she does not mind this improbable event, still he needs to travel quickly for the consequences of delay aren't pleasant . For anyone who likes interesting high adventure and not to take it seriously, the novel won't disappoint fans of this type ... the others...well there are millions of books in the world.
December 5, 2010
Louis, where have you been all my life? Forty four years on the planet, probably thirty of those in an awareness of this author and this the first of his books I've read. It was pure, unadulterated story telling, artful in its simplicity and gripping with its sure-footed plotting, characterisation and knowledge of the wilderness. No sex, no swearing, no ultra-violence, and no need for any of it to keep your attention. I loved it, despite the feeling that it was from a different, simpler era, where a man had to do what he had to do while other men had to do what they had to do too. And women could join in as supporting acts providing they didn't engage in any of that slushy stuff (all the women characters would have been comfortable discussing the gold standard instead of fluffy kittens. In fact, all of them would have mined gold, not discussed it.) But it is the men, the real men, the book is interested in exploring and L'Amour has got the steroetypical "Iron John" nailed. The pace never flags and the ending rolls the story up and ties it off with pure finesse. As soon as I put the finished book down I was on Amazon ordering up his autobiography. And thank you Amazon Lists for pointing me in the direction of this book and author. A defininte contender for Book of the Year.
June 25, 2017
Two parts Rambo, one part Firefox – all Louis L’Amour.
First published in 1986, this is one of L’Amour’s later books (he died in 1988) and tells the story of Major Joe Mack, who was shot down over the Soviet Union and was held briefly and interrogated but then escaped into the Siberian wilderness and kept going!
Simply told, with few frills but from a talented storytelling, veteran writer, this was fun to read.
L’Amour spins a very empathetic story about a US Air Force pilot shot down over Siberia, but who is a Sioux and was raised to his heritage and learns to survive and even thrive while the Soviets try to catch his trail. L’Amour sets up a book length showdown between Mack and his Soviet counterpart Yakut native Alekhin who also lives as their ancestors did.
Like most of L'Amour's books, this is also a vehicle for him to explore themes of naturalism, fortitude, and personal courage. Readers will also notice in L'Amour's depiction of Mack a ubiquitous and thematic respect for the Native American.
First published in 1986, this is one of L’Amour’s later books (he died in 1988) and tells the story of Major Joe Mack, who was shot down over the Soviet Union and was held briefly and interrogated but then escaped into the Siberian wilderness and kept going!
Simply told, with few frills but from a talented storytelling, veteran writer, this was fun to read.
L’Amour spins a very empathetic story about a US Air Force pilot shot down over Siberia, but who is a Sioux and was raised to his heritage and learns to survive and even thrive while the Soviets try to catch his trail. L’Amour sets up a book length showdown between Mack and his Soviet counterpart Yakut native Alekhin who also lives as their ancestors did.
Like most of L'Amour's books, this is also a vehicle for him to explore themes of naturalism, fortitude, and personal courage. Readers will also notice in L'Amour's depiction of Mack a ubiquitous and thematic respect for the Native American.
September 11, 2023
An exciting adventure tale of survival in a harsh environment!
Major Joe "Mack" Makatozi, a full blooded Sioux and skilled experimental pilot is captured and sent to a top-secret prison camp in the depths of Siberia when his aircraft is forced down over a hostile cold war Russia. His escape over the wire and his flight into the hostile environment of winter Siberia triggers a nation wide manhunt spearheaded by the commandant of the camp, Colonel Arkady Zamatev (who is all too aware of the harsh "career-limiting" results of mistakes in Communist Russia) and Alekhin, a skilled and ruthless Yakut tracker who has never yet failed to reel in an escapee, more often dead than alive.
Initially confident that they can corral their man in short order, Zamatev and Alekhin fail to realize how quickly Mack's indomitable Sioux spirit, his lust for life and his astounding survival skills, learned during his upbringing as a Sioux warrior, will come to the surface and allow him to evade capture over a two year period. Hunting with a handmade bow and arrows, preparation of emergency camps, astonishing hair's breadth escapes, lethal traps set to confound the small army on his trail, construction of leather breeches and moccasins in the field, fire-starting, extreme cold weather survival skills, fording of rivers, cross-country navigation and much, much more are described with an exciting sense of realism and adventure that never falls into the trap of portraying Mack as invincible.
The ending is a grim one that is based on Mack's historical sense of native justice and retribution against his tormenter, Alekhin, and provides a very satisfying completion to LAST OF THE BREED as a stand alone novel. But his sworn revenge against Zamatev and his relationship with Natalya Baronas, a Russian peasant he met in his flight to the Bering Strait remain open and unresolved. Sadly, the obvious plans for a sequel will never come to fruition as L'Amour has passed away.
Nay-sayers and detractors will point out that L'Amour ignored some pretty obvious tools that would have likely resulted in Mack's almost certain re-capture - dogs, infrared thermography and high resolution satellite imagery are three possibilities that come to mind immediately. But then we wouldn't have had a perfectly delightful, fast-paced, exciting adventure to read, would we? Detractors be damned - it was a great story! Read it, live a little and enjoy.
Paul Weiss
Major Joe "Mack" Makatozi, a full blooded Sioux and skilled experimental pilot is captured and sent to a top-secret prison camp in the depths of Siberia when his aircraft is forced down over a hostile cold war Russia. His escape over the wire and his flight into the hostile environment of winter Siberia triggers a nation wide manhunt spearheaded by the commandant of the camp, Colonel Arkady Zamatev (who is all too aware of the harsh "career-limiting" results of mistakes in Communist Russia) and Alekhin, a skilled and ruthless Yakut tracker who has never yet failed to reel in an escapee, more often dead than alive.
Initially confident that they can corral their man in short order, Zamatev and Alekhin fail to realize how quickly Mack's indomitable Sioux spirit, his lust for life and his astounding survival skills, learned during his upbringing as a Sioux warrior, will come to the surface and allow him to evade capture over a two year period. Hunting with a handmade bow and arrows, preparation of emergency camps, astonishing hair's breadth escapes, lethal traps set to confound the small army on his trail, construction of leather breeches and moccasins in the field, fire-starting, extreme cold weather survival skills, fording of rivers, cross-country navigation and much, much more are described with an exciting sense of realism and adventure that never falls into the trap of portraying Mack as invincible.
The ending is a grim one that is based on Mack's historical sense of native justice and retribution against his tormenter, Alekhin, and provides a very satisfying completion to LAST OF THE BREED as a stand alone novel. But his sworn revenge against Zamatev and his relationship with Natalya Baronas, a Russian peasant he met in his flight to the Bering Strait remain open and unresolved. Sadly, the obvious plans for a sequel will never come to fruition as L'Amour has passed away.
Nay-sayers and detractors will point out that L'Amour ignored some pretty obvious tools that would have likely resulted in Mack's almost certain re-capture - dogs, infrared thermography and high resolution satellite imagery are three possibilities that come to mind immediately. But then we wouldn't have had a perfectly delightful, fast-paced, exciting adventure to read, would we? Detractors be damned - it was a great story! Read it, live a little and enjoy.
Paul Weiss
April 30, 2010
I read this one way back when so to speak. I'd forgotten it till it came up in another conversation.
Joe Mack a Major and an American pilot is shot down and has to escape through Siberia finally across the Bering Strait. He has to depend on his skills as a Native American as well as his training. It's a good outdoors/adventure story.
This isn't a western as most of L'Amour's books are. It's well written and what is usually called a "page turner". May be a bit of what is called a "guy book", but good.
Joe Mack a Major and an American pilot is shot down and has to escape through Siberia finally across the Bering Strait. He has to depend on his skills as a Native American as well as his training. It's a good outdoors/adventure story.
This isn't a western as most of L'Amour's books are. It's well written and what is usually called a "page turner". May be a bit of what is called a "guy book", but good.
June 10, 2013
Before you read further, you should know I'm a big L'amour fan, so I start out with a biased review. Having said that, if the book was total crap, I'd say so, but I'd probably say it nicer, like "this book would make great fertilizer" or something. Except I bought the Kindle version, so that doesn't really apply. And I wouldn't give it five stars. But I did, and it's worth it.
This is a great book. As usual LL creates a character that is over-the-top but that doesn't deter from the fantastic writing. I've never wandered the tundra and frozen forests of Russia, but after reading this I feel like I have. Not that I really want to. I'm a middle-aged, overweight guy and it would kill me. But for just a little while, while reading this book, I actually pictured myself surviving in the wilds by wits and skill alone. I skinned that elk. I made that bow. Then I got really cold, so I went and got a blanket to finish reading the book. *Warning* - you might get cold reading this book. Keep a warm blanket handy.
*Spoiler Alert (sort of)* If you're looking for romance, this isn't your book. LL tosses a bit of what he considers "romance"; into the book, but it boils down to one of the characters is a girl and our main character is a guy. *Not* romance.
If you're looking for a book with adventure, intrigue and man-against-nature and man-against-man encounters, this is most certainly your book. Buy it, then grab a cup of your favorite hot beverage when you start reading it. You can thank me later.
This is a great book. As usual LL creates a character that is over-the-top but that doesn't deter from the fantastic writing. I've never wandered the tundra and frozen forests of Russia, but after reading this I feel like I have. Not that I really want to. I'm a middle-aged, overweight guy and it would kill me. But for just a little while, while reading this book, I actually pictured myself surviving in the wilds by wits and skill alone. I skinned that elk. I made that bow. Then I got really cold, so I went and got a blanket to finish reading the book. *Warning* - you might get cold reading this book. Keep a warm blanket handy.
*Spoiler Alert (sort of)* If you're looking for romance, this isn't your book. LL tosses a bit of what he considers "romance"; into the book, but it boils down to one of the characters is a girl and our main character is a guy. *Not* romance.
If you're looking for a book with adventure, intrigue and man-against-nature and man-against-man encounters, this is most certainly your book. Buy it, then grab a cup of your favorite hot beverage when you start reading it. You can thank me later.
August 5, 2011
My father's favorite authors were Zane Grey and Louis L'Amour. I'm not sure if anyone reads Zane Grey anymore but Louis L'Amour still remains popular. I read a couple of his westerns early in my life but was not impressed. They seemed rather formulaic to me. I was never that much on Western fiction to begin with, to be honest.
So recently one of the local book club members suggested Last of The Breed and I was excited to give it a try especially because it was not a Western, directly at least. I'm glad I did for the novel makes it clear that L'Amour was a formidable talent able to use a straight forward action plot and place many layers into the story. Last of the Breed is about an American armed forces pilot. who is also a Sioux Indian, being shot down by The Russians. This is in the 80s when The Soviet Union and The United States are still in an active cold war. He is kept in a Siberian prison but managed to escape. The entire local military is out to find him and he sees the only possible route out is to go across the Aleutians into Alaska like his ancestors did so long ago. Chasing him is a Yakut tracker who sees the chase as a challenge to hunt someone as savvy about the wilderness as he is.
This is what makes the tale so much more than the usual thriller chase novel. In order to survive, Joe Mack must get in touch with his ancestral roots. He is an American patriot but it is his knowledge and dedication to his tribal ways that will help him to survive. The author shows not only good knowledge of Indian ways but a strong empathy. Yet I can't help seeing that Mack is dealing with some conflicts between his patriotism to a conquering nation and his roots. The Yakut natives of Siberian and other fugitives from the Soviet penal system can identify with this and they become his strongest allies in his quest to find home. L'Amour throws a little winter romance in this story but it is the harrowing story of survival against all odds and the conflicts between loyalties for both American and Russians that make this tale so vibrant.
So recently one of the local book club members suggested Last of The Breed and I was excited to give it a try especially because it was not a Western, directly at least. I'm glad I did for the novel makes it clear that L'Amour was a formidable talent able to use a straight forward action plot and place many layers into the story. Last of the Breed is about an American armed forces pilot. who is also a Sioux Indian, being shot down by The Russians. This is in the 80s when The Soviet Union and The United States are still in an active cold war. He is kept in a Siberian prison but managed to escape. The entire local military is out to find him and he sees the only possible route out is to go across the Aleutians into Alaska like his ancestors did so long ago. Chasing him is a Yakut tracker who sees the chase as a challenge to hunt someone as savvy about the wilderness as he is.
This is what makes the tale so much more than the usual thriller chase novel. In order to survive, Joe Mack must get in touch with his ancestral roots. He is an American patriot but it is his knowledge and dedication to his tribal ways that will help him to survive. The author shows not only good knowledge of Indian ways but a strong empathy. Yet I can't help seeing that Mack is dealing with some conflicts between his patriotism to a conquering nation and his roots. The Yakut natives of Siberian and other fugitives from the Soviet penal system can identify with this and they become his strongest allies in his quest to find home. L'Amour throws a little winter romance in this story but it is the harrowing story of survival against all odds and the conflicts between loyalties for both American and Russians that make this tale so vibrant.
January 12, 2009
This book had a big impact on me at a pivotal time in my life. While struggling to fit at a new school during my eighth grade year I was assigned to read this book for my English class. I couldn't put the book down until I was finished with it (I was reprimanded several times for reading it during classes). At the time I identified closely with the hero in the story. This book gave me the courage I needed at the time and I ended up going out for the wrestling team and I had an undefeated season that year. I even ended up taking up pole vaulting in track and field the next year in high school because of the opening scene of the book! This was Luois L'Amour's final book before he died and one of his very best.
May 17, 2022
My grandfather read every single Louis L'Amour book that existed. He tried more than once to interest me but I never did read any. Finally a couple years ago I picked up Last of the Breed and read it in honor of my Grandad.
It's an amazing story! Talk about a story of survival! Joe Mack is in the US Air Force and his plane goes down somewhere in Russia. Joe Mack (gotta love that name) ends up in a Soviet prison camp. The way he escapes is fantastic! Then his trek through the wilderness trying to get back to a place he can then get to the USA....completely unbelievable but again - amazing!
I loved the story and it's not my usual type of book, but I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good adventure story!
It's an amazing story! Talk about a story of survival! Joe Mack is in the US Air Force and his plane goes down somewhere in Russia. Joe Mack (gotta love that name) ends up in a Soviet prison camp. The way he escapes is fantastic! Then his trek through the wilderness trying to get back to a place he can then get to the USA....completely unbelievable but again - amazing!
I loved the story and it's not my usual type of book, but I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good adventure story!
November 12, 2015
When I was in high school,before they had television and talking pictures,I read a short story called The Most Dangerous Game.I strongly recommend it.The Last of the Breed has borrowed a lot from this story.In a good way.Louis L'Amour has taught me a lot about Russia and American Indians.His descriptions of Siberian life,animals and the physical beauty of the country are educational and thrilling.Good story from start to end.
March 12, 2018
This was a book for the manly men out there.
Since I am not a) a man or b) particularly manly, I don't believe I am the target audience.
*as the manly men in tight tights song plays in my head....*
He hunted, he skinned animals, and he made fires...lots of fires (it was very cold)
Through all of this he was a hunted man, so there were also traps set.
I understand how L'Amour sold and wrote so many books.
I am far from being an expert on his writing but I have seen my share of 'mass market'.
This is in no way a slight against the author. Some authors are just able to find that formula that sells the books.
Listed as one of the world's most popular writers, people would buy his books just because it was attached to his name.
So, mad props to the man.
However I personally won't be picking up another one of his books any time soon.
Brought to your by: Book Club Made Me Do It.
Since I am not a) a man or b) particularly manly, I don't believe I am the target audience.
*as the manly men in tight tights song plays in my head....*
He hunted, he skinned animals, and he made fires...lots of fires (it was very cold)
Through all of this he was a hunted man, so there were also traps set.
I understand how L'Amour sold and wrote so many books.
I am far from being an expert on his writing but I have seen my share of 'mass market'.
This is in no way a slight against the author. Some authors are just able to find that formula that sells the books.
Listed as one of the world's most popular writers, people would buy his books just because it was attached to his name.
So, mad props to the man.
However I personally won't be picking up another one of his books any time soon.
Brought to your by: Book Club Made Me Do It.
August 1, 2020
This was an action-packed novel clearly aimed at male readers. It is a manly man's book, centered on man v. nature. American v. Communists. Indian v. Civilization. etc.
It throws in the prerequisite maiden-in-distress and adventures man-surviving-the-wilderness. Creative and fun--I can tell why this is a favorite of my Dad's.
It throws in the prerequisite maiden-in-distress and adventures man-surviving-the-wilderness. Creative and fun--I can tell why this is a favorite of my Dad's.
December 11, 2016
Louis L'Amour's Last of the Breed is a story of struggle, sacrifice, prevalence. Major Joe Makatozi finds himself imprisoned in the interior of Siberia after his plane was forced down. He quickly discovers that his captor, Colonel Zamatev is holding him for the information he has, and after it is discovered, Joe Mack will be terminated. The story follows Joe throughout his captivating escape from Russia, as he retraces the path his Native American ancestors took on their path to America. Joe quickly discovers he has no friends in this far off land, and must tap into his all of his wilderness skills if he wants to get out alive. After months of alluding his pursuers and living just as his ancestors did, Joe discovers what he really is, a savage. The story also follows those who cross paths with Joe, such as Natalya and Stephan Baronas and also follows their struggles is Siberia. The book also offers another perspective through the eyes of Joes pursuers, Colonel Zamatev, and the legendary Yakut tracker Alekhin.
I found this to be a very interesting, and captivating story. As I myself am an outdoorsman, I found this to be a very entertaining book to read for most of it pertains to survival in the deep woods of Siberia. Not only did this offer a very captivating story about Joe Mack alluding his pursuers, but it also followed the stories of several more characters as well. This greatly enjoyed this aspect of the book, because it not only allowed for another perspective on the chase through the eyes of the pursuers, but it also followed the stories of those who crossed paths with Joes Mack. This aspect allowed for a very diverse story, and helped to keep it from becoming bland by often switching from story to story. Last of the Breed is a very interesting and captivating story, and I highly recommend it for anybody looking for a good book.
I found this to be a very interesting, and captivating story. As I myself am an outdoorsman, I found this to be a very entertaining book to read for most of it pertains to survival in the deep woods of Siberia. Not only did this offer a very captivating story about Joe Mack alluding his pursuers, but it also followed the stories of several more characters as well. This greatly enjoyed this aspect of the book, because it not only allowed for another perspective on the chase through the eyes of the pursuers, but it also followed the stories of those who crossed paths with Joes Mack. This aspect allowed for a very diverse story, and helped to keep it from becoming bland by often switching from story to story. Last of the Breed is a very interesting and captivating story, and I highly recommend it for anybody looking for a good book.
March 16, 2009
If you think that Louis L'Amour only writes Westerns and you don't think that's your style, but if you like adventures filled with drama and intrigue, you should try "Best of the Breed". The story takes place during the Cold War, when a U.S. Air Force plane is shot down over Siberia and the pilot is taken to a secret Russian POW camp to be tortured for information. But the pilot is a Souix Indian who was raised by his grandfather in the mountains of Idaho and taught all the survival skills of his Indian ancestors. He escapes and sets out to return to the U.S. across Siberia and the Bering Strait to Alaska alone and on foot, living off the land, escaping detection. I thought it was facinating, although a little slow in a few parts. I'm betting it will be different than anything you have read, so take a chance!
June 26, 2022
US native american soldier vs. Russian KGB/military
US soldier vs. Siberian winter
American Indian vs. Russian Yakut
US soldier vs. impossible odds
May I introduce Joe Mack
This book was mostly written in the first person telling it, but at times it went to a few others in order to tell the story. I consider this a great read. It is a novel so long but was hard to stop reading. It was so good. It takes place in Russia. The main charter is an American Indian with the US Air Force. He has been forced down and held by the Russians. This was before the cold war ended. He has escaped and it is about his journey, struggles, fight, and people he meets along the way. All the time he is being hunted by the Russians. This book would make any American proud, especially the American Indian.
US soldier vs. Siberian winter
American Indian vs. Russian Yakut
US soldier vs. impossible odds
May I introduce Joe Mack
This book was mostly written in the first person telling it, but at times it went to a few others in order to tell the story. I consider this a great read. It is a novel so long but was hard to stop reading. It was so good. It takes place in Russia. The main charter is an American Indian with the US Air Force. He has been forced down and held by the Russians. This was before the cold war ended. He has escaped and it is about his journey, struggles, fight, and people he meets along the way. All the time he is being hunted by the Russians. This book would make any American proud, especially the American Indian.
October 19, 2016
I never bought the book's central premise. Sometime during the late 1980s an Air Force test pilot flying an experimental plane is shot down and captured by the Soviets. Being half Sioux, half Cheyenne, impossibly brilliant, a superb athlete and trained in wilderness survival, the pilot, Joe Mack, manages to escape and lose himself in the wilds of Siberia. A massive chase then ensues with KGB and GRU operatives flying all over the place trying to get him back.
But it never made much sense to me. Why was this fighter pilot so valuable to the Soviets that half the army and the KGB deployed to recapture him? Joe was too perfect to be believable and the Russians felt like graphic novel caricatures. And how convenient that the first four people Joe meets in the vast Siberian wilderness speak English! And then all these various characters kept bumping into each other in a largely trackless five million square mile territory. Right. Okay so the CIA famously did not foresee the fall of the Iron Curtain, which occurred not long after this novel was published. Why should Louis L'Amour be held to a higher standard?
I could have forgiven all that if the wilderness survival parts had been better described. How do you make an obsidian arrowhead? How do you tan a hide? There were some cool ideas (making shoes with elk hooves to create false trails) but they were too few and far between to sustain my interest.
But it never made much sense to me. Why was this fighter pilot so valuable to the Soviets that half the army and the KGB deployed to recapture him? Joe was too perfect to be believable and the Russians felt like graphic novel caricatures. And how convenient that the first four people Joe meets in the vast Siberian wilderness speak English! And then all these various characters kept bumping into each other in a largely trackless five million square mile territory. Right. Okay so the CIA famously did not foresee the fall of the Iron Curtain, which occurred not long after this novel was published. Why should Louis L'Amour be held to a higher standard?
I could have forgiven all that if the wilderness survival parts had been better described. How do you make an obsidian arrowhead? How do you tan a hide? There were some cool ideas (making shoes with elk hooves to create false trails) but they were too few and far between to sustain my interest.
June 7, 2012
I have to admit, I was skeptical about reading a book by Louis L'Amour, but I trusted the friend who recommended it (Thanks, Joyce!) and I was more than pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it.
U.S. Air Force Major Joe Makatozi finds himself a prisoner in Siberia during the Cold War. His test plane being forced down had been artfully arranged by Colonel Zamatev, whose plan is to capture and interrogate specific people with knowledge of the weapons systems of the West. But Colonel Zamatev, despite his careful planning, in totally unprepared for the part-Sioux, part-Cheyenne, part Scottish Highlander enigma that is "Joe Mack". The pilot escapes from the prison almost immediately, and using his native skills, survives the Siberian winter and eludes the Russian Army as Zamatov becomes increasingly obsessed with re-capturing him.
I can now understand why Louis L'Amour won so many awards for his writing. He is a masterful storyteller, who kept me riveted all the way to the final moments. And, what an ending!! I highly recommend this one to anyone who loves a good adventure.
U.S. Air Force Major Joe Makatozi finds himself a prisoner in Siberia during the Cold War. His test plane being forced down had been artfully arranged by Colonel Zamatev, whose plan is to capture and interrogate specific people with knowledge of the weapons systems of the West. But Colonel Zamatev, despite his careful planning, in totally unprepared for the part-Sioux, part-Cheyenne, part Scottish Highlander enigma that is "Joe Mack". The pilot escapes from the prison almost immediately, and using his native skills, survives the Siberian winter and eludes the Russian Army as Zamatov becomes increasingly obsessed with re-capturing him.
I can now understand why Louis L'Amour won so many awards for his writing. He is a masterful storyteller, who kept me riveted all the way to the final moments. And, what an ending!! I highly recommend this one to anyone who loves a good adventure.
September 19, 2020
I thought it was an exciting book. I have never read a western type novel before and although this was not based in the wild west, it is based on an American Indian (Major Joseph Makatozi, USAF) who begins to rediscover his Indian heritage. Joe Mack is a strong willed individual who being captured by the Soviet Union for his knowledge of experimental air craft, as well as how to fly these. Joe Mack takes on the GRU Soviet army Col. Arkady Zamatev. Who is a very dangerous and Skilled Interrogator, A Yakut Tribesman Alekhin Who is infamous for never allowing prisoners to escape, and who does not mind killing them in the process. He also Takes on the KGB and the entire Soviet Union, and not to mention crossing the Siberian Tundras, Swamps, Forests, and Rivers in the middle of winter.
It was intense and inspiring to me and I would recommend it to anyone.
It was intense and inspiring to me and I would recommend it to anyone.
April 20, 2012
Grrrrrrr, I had a hard time rating this book. The story is GREAT! Love it (other than the abrupt ending). Louis L'Amour is a storyteller. In fact, he once said, "I think of myself in the oral tradition - as a troubadour, a village tale-teller, the man in the shadows of the campfire. That's the way I'd like to be remembered as a storyteller. A good storyteller." That being said, I thought this book was VERY poorly written, to the point of driving me crazy. He repeated himself often. He used the same sentence structures over and over. He contradicted himself. The main character was too perfect. I have never read any other Louis L'Amour books before, so I have nothing to compare this to, and I don't want to judge him based on just one book. I enjoyed it enough that I will read something else of his in the future, and hope for the best;)
May 16, 2022
I have read a few of Louis L’Amour’s books. I never knew he had written anything but Westerns. What a wonderful book. Not one curse word, no sex scenes, nothing but literature in its best. Maybe one of the best books I have ever read. It’s a book one of my Goodreads friends said “the only book I could read twice”. He is right!
My favorite quote “Man needs so little, he thought, yet he begins wanting so much.”
Something to think about!
My favorite quote “Man needs so little, he thought, yet he begins wanting so much.”
Something to think about!
July 23, 2021
I believe this was Mr. L'Amour's last book. It is not a western, but still does feature a strong, intelligent, quiet and capable man overcoming an extreme adversity. It is a satisfying and well written story and I will read more of them.
May 7, 2016
Finished reading this to my boys and they wanted more.
October 4, 2018
Άκρως απολαυστική περιπέτεια στα κατάβαθα της πάλαι ποτέ Σοβιετικής ένωσης.
Η γραφή έχει μπόλικες αμερικανιές (ο Τζο Μακ φέρνει και λίγο από Ράμπο στο First blood), αλλά πέρασα πολύ καλά μαζί του και του τα συγχωρώ όλα και με το παραπάνω! Εξάλλου, το βιβλίο γράφτηκε το 1986 που όλα αυτά ήταν εντελώς της μόδας.
Νομίζω ότι σε όποιον κάνει κλικ η περίληψη, θα αρέσει και το περιεχόμενο. Το μόνο βέβαιο ότι θα ξαναδιαβάσω κι άλλο βιβλίο του L'Amour.
Η γραφή έχει μπόλικες αμερικανιές (ο Τζο Μακ φέρνει και λίγο από Ράμπο στο First blood), αλλά πέρασα πολύ καλά μαζί του και του τα συγχωρώ όλα και με το παραπάνω! Εξάλλου, το βιβλίο γράφτηκε το 1986 που όλα αυτά ήταν εντελώς της μόδας.
Νομίζω ότι σε όποιον κάνει κλικ η περίληψη, θα αρέσει και το περιεχόμενο. Το μόνο βέβαιο ότι θα ξαναδιαβάσω κι άλλο βιβλίο του L'Amour.
May 11, 2018
My husband loves to learn about basic survival skills; I enjoy reading survival stories. We both want to be prepared to live in 'the wild' if we must. We aren't doomsday preppers or anything, but we do fly small airplanes and live in an area frequented by hurricanes. Things could happen, and these survival stories are for educational purposes! Louis L'Amour's Last of the Breed is the one story that I just can not stop reading. I have read it between 5 to 10 times in the last 13 years and each time I am riveted!
Joe Mack is a Sioux who is also a test pilot for the Air Force. He is captured by the Russians and brought to Siberia for interrogation. Joe Mack refuses to remain a prisoner and he quickly escapes. But he now much survive a Siberian winter and it will require all his military and ancestral training to make it out alive. (Now I want to start reading it again!)
Last of the Breed was originally published in 1986 and the writing style is somewhat different than current publications. The language is often more telling than showing, which requires a vivid imagination to fill in all the glorious details. Luckily, I have one of those, but many reviews complain that the novel drags on because of it. L'Amour also has a tendency to repeat himself...a lot. I blame the editing process because this should have been fixed before publication. The only time it bugged me was when the next sentence would be a reworded copy of the previous sentence. That is an editing issue.
Don't let this deter you because the story is great! I am enthralled by Joe Mack and his journey across Siberia. Plus, L'Amour provides an interesting cast of supporting characters for you to both love and hate. I hold my breath as Talya and her father rush to the Chinese border. I whisper "yes!" each time Joe Mack escapes; and I curse Alekhin as he hunts Joe Mack down. But, this is more than a story of sheer survival. L'Amour also describes the mental strain of surviving and living on the run. These passages left me with goose-bumps as the fear of being hunted courses through me while Alekhin closes in on Joe Mack. I know how the story ends, but that doesn't matter. I feel like I am there in Siberia every time I open this book.
Last of the Breed will always be one of my favorites and I plan to keep rereading it. Why hasn't it been made in to a movie?! Anyways, happy survival reading everyone :P
Lindsay
Check out more reviews at https://sandbetweenthepages.wordpress...
Joe Mack is a Sioux who is also a test pilot for the Air Force. He is captured by the Russians and brought to Siberia for interrogation. Joe Mack refuses to remain a prisoner and he quickly escapes. But he now much survive a Siberian winter and it will require all his military and ancestral training to make it out alive. (Now I want to start reading it again!)
Last of the Breed was originally published in 1986 and the writing style is somewhat different than current publications. The language is often more telling than showing, which requires a vivid imagination to fill in all the glorious details. Luckily, I have one of those, but many reviews complain that the novel drags on because of it. L'Amour also has a tendency to repeat himself...a lot. I blame the editing process because this should have been fixed before publication. The only time it bugged me was when the next sentence would be a reworded copy of the previous sentence. That is an editing issue.
Don't let this deter you because the story is great! I am enthralled by Joe Mack and his journey across Siberia. Plus, L'Amour provides an interesting cast of supporting characters for you to both love and hate. I hold my breath as Talya and her father rush to the Chinese border. I whisper "yes!" each time Joe Mack escapes; and I curse Alekhin as he hunts Joe Mack down. But, this is more than a story of sheer survival. L'Amour also describes the mental strain of surviving and living on the run. These passages left me with goose-bumps as the fear of being hunted courses through me while Alekhin closes in on Joe Mack. I know how the story ends, but that doesn't matter. I feel like I am there in Siberia every time I open this book.
Last of the Breed will always be one of my favorites and I plan to keep rereading it. Why hasn't it been made in to a movie?! Anyways, happy survival reading everyone :P
Lindsay
Check out more reviews at https://sandbetweenthepages.wordpress...
February 1, 2019
Well that was fun! I was about as tired as the hero when I finished, and he had just trekked across Siberia.
LL'A never disappoints. This was not a western. The cover says it's his biggest seller ever. It's about a Native American pilot taken captive in cold war Russia. He escapes, of course, and we're off to the races.
There are so many different Russians after him it was hard to keep them straight. The dialogue was occasionally eye-rolly, such as this gem from our hero: "I walk in the shoes of the men of today. I fly their planes, I eat their food. But my heart is in the wilderness with feathers in my hair."
Yet for every cheesy bit there is a swoon-worthy bit. The familiar "father and daughter living in a cabin" story line is here, providing the love interest. I love those. The ending was a bit abrupt for me, I expected more after that long horrible journey. I'll have to make up my own continuing story but I think Louis wanted readers to do just that.
LL'A never disappoints. This was not a western. The cover says it's his biggest seller ever. It's about a Native American pilot taken captive in cold war Russia. He escapes, of course, and we're off to the races.
There are so many different Russians after him it was hard to keep them straight. The dialogue was occasionally eye-rolly, such as this gem from our hero: "I walk in the shoes of the men of today. I fly their planes, I eat their food. But my heart is in the wilderness with feathers in my hair."
Yet for every cheesy bit there is a swoon-worthy bit. The familiar "father and daughter living in a cabin" story line is here, providing the love interest. I love those. The ending was a bit abrupt for me, I expected more after that long horrible journey. I'll have to make up my own continuing story but I think Louis wanted readers to do just that.
March 30, 2010
This was one of my grandpa's favorite books so when I came across it in a pile for a loonie, it was was a must read. It has a rugged peacefulness to it that made even me, the animal lover not cringe during the hunting scenes. The book was well-written and definitely took me the closest I will ever be to camping out in Siberia. It also provided a glimpse into the political climate of the Soviet Union during the 1980's. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a slow, methodical but nonetheless entertaining drama with an interesting and suspenseful plot.
January 2, 2008
The best thing that can be said for this book is that it is mercifully short. It is nothing more than a several hundred page explanation of why the American indians were so awesome, filled with prejudide and unfair accusations and assumptions about lighter skinned people. It starts out with a description of the life of a native american, comparing them, as a peacefull and utopian society, to the 'white men', a barbarric, godless, wasteful, and power hungry pack of animals. Okay.
It then switches gears, bringing us to the 1980's, where we meet our main character, Joe Mack, A native american who is apparantly the steryotypical ultimate human being. He is an ivy league grad, olympic caliber athelete, American air force major, Souix indian warrior, trapper, and a test pilot for ridiculously advanced fictional experimental aircraft. It then takes us to his only mistake of the book: He gets shot down over Siberia, and, as luck would heve it, right by a Soviet prison camp. Interestingly enough, the never actually explain what he was doing over Siberia. Anyway, he is promptly captured, shoved into a cell, and questioned for an inordinate amount of time, during which he, as the ultimate human specimen, naturally reveals nothing. As soon as the next night comes, he procedes to pole vault over a 20 foot high electric fence,evade about 50 angry Russian guards(the book takes this oppertunity to point out that the white men are lazy and stupid, easy to evade and defeat) and make his escape. Bravo. He is now stranded, with no food, clothing, or shelter, in one of the most brutal climates on earth, with winter and a horde of angry Soviets fast approaching.
The book goes rapidly downhill from here, as he procedes to kill a 400 pound bear with a sharpened stick, sprint away from machine gun armed russians with 300 pounds or meat on his back, and kill an unfeasible amount of armed pursuers. The rest of the book tells us how awesome indians are, even when they have been shot down over siberia. This book is perfect for people with a serious grudge against russians or white people in general, or anyone looking for a book in which everything goes right. Personally, I found this book boring, the tone insulting, and the premise utterly unrealistic, the total opposite of what was promised by the cover and summary on the back.
It then switches gears, bringing us to the 1980's, where we meet our main character, Joe Mack, A native american who is apparantly the steryotypical ultimate human being. He is an ivy league grad, olympic caliber athelete, American air force major, Souix indian warrior, trapper, and a test pilot for ridiculously advanced fictional experimental aircraft. It then takes us to his only mistake of the book: He gets shot down over Siberia, and, as luck would heve it, right by a Soviet prison camp. Interestingly enough, the never actually explain what he was doing over Siberia. Anyway, he is promptly captured, shoved into a cell, and questioned for an inordinate amount of time, during which he, as the ultimate human specimen, naturally reveals nothing. As soon as the next night comes, he procedes to pole vault over a 20 foot high electric fence,evade about 50 angry Russian guards(the book takes this oppertunity to point out that the white men are lazy and stupid, easy to evade and defeat) and make his escape. Bravo. He is now stranded, with no food, clothing, or shelter, in one of the most brutal climates on earth, with winter and a horde of angry Soviets fast approaching.
The book goes rapidly downhill from here, as he procedes to kill a 400 pound bear with a sharpened stick, sprint away from machine gun armed russians with 300 pounds or meat on his back, and kill an unfeasible amount of armed pursuers. The rest of the book tells us how awesome indians are, even when they have been shot down over siberia. This book is perfect for people with a serious grudge against russians or white people in general, or anyone looking for a book in which everything goes right. Personally, I found this book boring, the tone insulting, and the premise utterly unrealistic, the total opposite of what was promised by the cover and summary on the back.
December 10, 2020
“I may be the last Indian, who will live in the old way, think the old thoughts.”
Tom Clancy minus the technobabble. Despite a different setting and century, Louis L’Amour’s Last of the Breed fits comfortably into his frontier novel corpus. Set, written, and published during the waning days of the Soviet Union, the tale follows USAF Major Joe Mack’s escape from Soviet custody deep in Siberia and his adventures fleeing the country by embracing the wilderness and his Sioux roots and upbringing.
“You are being foolish about this. The man will die out there. Siberia will kill him. Let him alone, let him die.” “Your advice is usually good. But not this time. Many men will die out there; many men can die. But not this man.”
The storytelling is linear and repetitive, but peripheral characters are drawn with sufficient depth and complexity to supply cliffhangers and the necessary coincidences. The framing story diminishes rather than increases the tension. L’Amours style is a refreshing throwback to his earlier adventure novels.
“This man does not think of time. He does not think of distance. The forest is his home.”
Joe’s frontiersmanship notwithstanding, his survival hangs on an improbable amount of luck. Spread over an area larger than the continental United States, characters continual meet each other just in the nick of time.
"Long ago he had learned that one could not make war against the wilderness. One had to live with it, not against it."
Tom Clancy minus the technobabble. Despite a different setting and century, Louis L’Amour’s Last of the Breed fits comfortably into his frontier novel corpus. Set, written, and published during the waning days of the Soviet Union, the tale follows USAF Major Joe Mack’s escape from Soviet custody deep in Siberia and his adventures fleeing the country by embracing the wilderness and his Sioux roots and upbringing.
“You are being foolish about this. The man will die out there. Siberia will kill him. Let him alone, let him die.” “Your advice is usually good. But not this time. Many men will die out there; many men can die. But not this man.”
The storytelling is linear and repetitive, but peripheral characters are drawn with sufficient depth and complexity to supply cliffhangers and the necessary coincidences. The framing story diminishes rather than increases the tension. L’Amours style is a refreshing throwback to his earlier adventure novels.
“This man does not think of time. He does not think of distance. The forest is his home.”
Joe’s frontiersmanship notwithstanding, his survival hangs on an improbable amount of luck. Spread over an area larger than the continental United States, characters continual meet each other just in the nick of time.
"Long ago he had learned that one could not make war against the wilderness. One had to live with it, not against it."
January 4, 2011
It was a cool story, and definitely different than I had anticipated. It sort of drug along, with bits of excitement thrown in the middle to keep you going. The best part was the very end. There weren't very many pages left, but there was still no resolution. More pages, more pages, and nothing. Finally, in one paragraph on the very last page, it closes the story off, and it was awesome. I'm a little bummed that we never heard from Natalya again, because she was cool, but knowing Joe Mack (the main character) it all worked out just as it should. (which meant that they got together and had happy, peaceful lives).
I'm not hooked on L'Amour, but it was a cool story and something different.
I'm not hooked on L'Amour, but it was a cool story and something different.
February 8, 2021
Major Joe Mack is a Native American Air Force test pilot. Flying over Alaska, his plane is forced down in Russia and captured. He is tortured for his technical knowledge but escapes into the wilds of the Russia Ural Mountains and is tracked by a native who prides himself on the number of men that he has tracked and killed. An epic struggle between native cultures ensues that asks "How strong is the venneer of civilization?" Pure Louis L'Amour adventure about courage and determination.
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