Erie Water

viii, 506 pp. Historical fiction which is set in the early 19th century during the building of the Erie Canal and the interaction of settlers and workmen with Mohawk, Seneca and Great Western tribes. Edmonds' novels are set in upstate New York, especially the area surrounding the Erie Canal. His ability to depict this region and its people during its settlement and development has been widely praised. Reviewers have called Edmonds "one of the best regional novelists this country has ever produced."