Writing the Northland

Writing the Northland: Jack London's and Robert W. Service's Imaginary Geography is the fi rst comparison of the two authors, examining their depiction of the "Northland" at the time of the Klondike gold rush and afterwards. Applying the concept of imaginary geography to the North, the book focuses on labels attached to the North by non-northerners. It explores how the Northland appears as "Frontier", "Eldorado", "Blank Space", "Projection Space for Ideologies of White Masculinity," and "Wilderness". This is the fi rst book to apply Yi-Fu Tuan's terminology of "topophilia" and "topophobia" to the writings of London and Service. The magic of the Northland in its wonderful beauty and terrifying horror is present in each chapter. The reader learns about how the two authors used, but also deviated from, well-known ideas about the North to create their Northland. The book is a valuable addition to Jack London studies and an important contribution to the small body of research that exists on Robert W. Service. It addresses London fans and Service enthusiasts, scholars and general audiences alike. As a book that considers the American and the Canadian background to the Klondike gold rush and the multi-national history of the North, the book is recommended for anyone interested in the North and in a comparative approach to the literature and culture of the United States and Canada.