Sorry! This site requires JavaScript. Virtually nothing will work without it. Please enable it in your browser.


The Alchemist's Dream

This medieval mystery adventure was a finalist for the 2007 Governor General’s Literary Award (Children’s Text)
From the Governor General's Jury: "In this engrossing historical adventure, John Wilson paints a vivid picture of a bygone era involving Henry Hudson’s fateful search for the elusive Northwest Passage, an alchemist, mysterious passengers, and enigmatic maps. The Alchemist’s Dream fascinates from start to finish. In the fall of 1669, the Nonsuch returns to London with a load of fur from Hudson Bay. It brings something else, too--the lost journal from Henry Hudson’s tragic search for a passage to Cathay in 1611. In the hands of a greedy sailor, the journal is merely an object to sell. But for Robert Bylot--a once-great maritime explorer--the book is a painful reminder of a past he’d rather forget. As Bylot relives his memories of a plague-ridden city, of the mysterious alchemist John Dee, and of mutiny in the frozen wastes of Hudson Bay, an age-old mystery is both revealed and solved. Set against the thrilling backdrop of the quest for the Northwest Passage, The Alchemist’s Dream is a riveting tale of exploration, ambition, and betrayal."

Important places

Hudson Bay (49)

Regions

Saskatchewan (281)

Countries

Canada (8,082)

Other geographical areas

Central Lowlands (North America) (1,334)
Canadian Praries (1,770)
Western Canada (2,591)