Baree, Son of Kazan was published by Doubleday, Page in 1917, and it is the sequel to Kazan — following Kazan’s offspring, Baree, as the young wolf-dog grows from a vulnerable pup to a powerful adult in the Canadian wilderness. The novel is essentially a bildungsroman in animal form: Baree must learn to hunt, to fight, to navigate the complex social hierarchies of both wolves and humans, and to find his own territory.
Curwood’s narrative skill is at its strongest here: the pup’s vulnerability engages the reader’s protective instincts, and Baree’s encounters with danger (eagles, wolverines, human trappers, forest fires) provide the episodic structure that adventure fiction demands. The Canadian landscape — the boreal forest, the river systems, the cycle of seasons from brutal winter to brief brilliant summer — is rendered with authentic detail.
The novel was adapted into a successful silent film (1925) and remains one of Curwood’s most read titles. Its appeal lies in the universal narrative of growth and survival: a young creature, alone in a dangerous world, who must become strong enough to survive through his own efforts.
Collecting Baree, Son of Kazan
First edition (Doubleday, Page, New York, 1917): Cloth binding, frontispiece.
Market values:
- First edition with dust jacket: $80–$200
- Without jacket: $15–$40
- Later editions: $5–$15