Seven Rivers West — Edward Hoagland

SEVEN RIVERS WEST chronicles the adventures of Cecil Roop, an easterner drawn to the West in the 1880s in search of a grizzly cub to bring back east to show on the Vaudeville circuit. During his quest--which evolves into a hunt for a bigfoot--he picks up eccentric companions: Sutton, a circus performer in search of gold; Charley, a wily old frontiersman; Roy, a one-armed, toothless gold hunter; Margaret, a serene Indian woman; and a pack of loyal dogs. Full of high drama, bear attacks, run-ins with displaced Indians, and set against the stunning backdrop of the natural wonders of the West at the turn of the century, this novel is at once a picaresque adventure and the exuberant story of an unprecedented quest.