Well I believe the title is sarcasm as in this book the Mounties did NOT conquer the West of Canada. They barely made it to their destination alive (some of them anyway). The fearsome Blackfeet were laughing at these keystone cops...it is a wonder they were not attacked and scalped.

The book is a very loose story built up of snippets from the diaries of several of the men in the troop. It certainly paints a different picture than what was taught in school when I was a kid. there is lots of material there to create interesting novels about the Canadian West. I will search out more on Jerry Potts the eventual guide that saved them and taught them how to life on the plains. He is a lot more threatening than I first thought though he liked Major McLeod and they had a good friendship once they met.

Over and over again I come to hate my white heritage when I see the greed and disrespect for others. The Indians were no goody-two-shoes either though...there was a lot of violence in those days.

Interesting to read but after a while you get tired of snippets and want to read a continuous novel. ( )

Interesting, but I found it a bit of a slow read ( )