Resumo de Swiftwater - Paul Annixter

Although Swiftwater was published in 1950, several themes in the novel make it a timeless story for young adults. Bucky Calloway, the fifteen-year-old son of a local woodsman, faces family hardships, physical danger, and the insults of the people in the town of Swiftwater who do not understand the Calloways’ way of life. A reverence for nature and a concomitant distrust of civilization; episodes of love, adventure, and combat; incidents in which emotion overcomes reason; and the devaluation of commercial interests make this junior novel a romantic tale. Bucky’s father, Cam, teaches the boy about hunting, trapping, and survival in the wilderness. Cam takes great—but silent—pride in the abilities of his son, and a strong mutual respect develops between the two. It is not long until Bucky must tend his father’s trap lines by himself because Cam has broken his leg. On his first trip out to check the traps, Bucky finds stolen bait and devoured game that has been caught in the now-ruined traps. A porcupine that has been eaten—quills and all— and the remains of a silver fox tell him that this destroyer is not the usual bear that raids the trap line. Cam and Bucky have been warned by Peter Nigosh, an old Indian, that there is a "bad dog" raiding the traps in the woods this winter. He suggests that they wait until next year to set their trap lines, but Cam is determined that nothing keep them from their livelihood. Bucky faces the frightening prospect that this "bad dog" is a wolverine, the most mysterious and feared woodland creature. Doubling back along his trail, Bucky surprises the wolverine and is able to hit him with a hurried shot. Bucky follows a trail of blood to a large undergrowth through which he must crawl to get at the wounded animal. His rifle lost, Bucky must slay the wolverine with his ax and hunting knife. At sixteen, he has a pelt that most woodsmen only hear about from old-timers. Bucky’s skill in the woods contrasts sharply with his inability to communicate with others, especially Bridie Mellott, the girl in whom he has been interested for several years. Standing in his way is Whit Turner, a boy from town he has fought before and who is also laying claim to Bridie. Since this defeat, Whit has trained himself for revenge but is still no match for Bucky. Whit’s defeat opens the way for the beginning of a romance between Bucky and Bridie, and also for the inauguration of a wildlife refuge—a dream Bucky and Cam share. Cam, however, is killed by hunters who are indiscriminately killing the geese the Calloways want to preserve. Bucky has faced the wolverine alone, and now he is alone again, facing the objections of the Swiftwater citizens who see a hunting lodge as a quick way to bolster the town’s faltering economy. Not until an enterprising newspaper reporter tells of the Calloways’ efforts to make Swiftwater a safe stop for migrating geese is the town persuaded of the value of the bird sanctuary. Bucky not only has learned his father’s skills but also has inherited the reality of his father’s dream.

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