"A tale of scientific arrogance [that] is truly unforgettable." –  Publishers Weekly 

"The simplicity and resonance of myth. There is not a page in this book without its horrors and its wonders." –  Kevin Spacey 

"Impeccably researched and gracefully written, this is an essential book." –  Andrea Barrett, author of Ship Fever and The Air We Breathe 

"White men have had lots of chances to override the rights of other people with indifference . . . Writing about this state of affairs can be risky . . . Kenn Harper walks this tightrope with grace." – Patricia Nelson Limerick, past president of the Organization of American Historians, in The New York Times Book Review

A “fascinating and sad story . . . well researched and simply told.” – USA Today
 
“Richly sensitive and totally gripping.” – Parade Magazine
 
A “smartly paced, deeply informative and moving book.” – The Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
“An exposé of the intellectual arrogance that permeated the race to explore the Arctic region.” – Library Journal (starred review) 
 
“Minik’s tale is a stinging indictment of the arrogance of some of the most prominent scientists and philanthropists of the time . . . But, as Harper concedes, the scientists’ behavior was hardly outrageous when viewed through the lens of the era. Perhaps that is the bigger tragedy.” – The Associated Press
 
“Minik’s saga is at once riveting and repulsive, enlightening and horrifying. Harper intertwines history, legend, anthropology, racism, greed and good intentions – the best and worst of human nature.  . . . don’t wait for the movie to discover this astonishing tale for yourself.” – The Toronto Sun
 
“In 1897, the story of Minik was passed off as science. But it didn’t take long for people to recognize it for what it truly was: a tale of kidnapping, exploitation and heartless abandonment.  . . . For Harper, telling Minik’s tale has clearly been a labor of love. . . . [his book] is a graceful reconstruction of Minik’s biography . . . letting the facts speak for themselves.” – Newsday
 
“A moving account of science devastatingly and thoughtlessly misapplied, one of the countless tragedies visited on Native America.” – Kirkus Reviews
 
 “Well-done and sympathetic . . . an incredible tale. “ – The El Paso Times
 
Minik “contains valuable historical lessons about often well intentioned but nonetheless destructive (museum) administrators and scientists . . . Harper is to be congratulated for diligent scholarship at the service of a strong sense of historical justice.” – The Journal of American History
 
Minik “paints a different picture of Robert Peary than that offered by history books and the encyclopedia . . . But Minik is not just a bitter tale of an Inuit boy and the terrible injustices that he experienced at the hands of so-called civilization. It is full of the better side of humanity . . . This book captures a snapshot of the era surrounding the foundation of the American Museum of Natural History.” – The Seattle Times
 
Minik is “a startling success for a macabre tale of looted skeletons, of freebooting rapacity by prominent figures of Arctic exploration, and of the conquest of the polar north as seen through the eyes of the Inuit . . . Most controversially, the book paints an unlovely portrait of two American icons: the widely respected museum, and Peary, who in 1909 led the first expedition to the North Pole.” – The Boston Globe