Author Farley Mowat, shown in an August 2007 photo, promises a revelation in his final book.Author Farley Mowat, shown in an August 2007 photo, promises a revelation in his final book. (Nova Scotia Nature Trust/Canadian Press)

McClelland & Stewart has announced that it will publish Farley Mowat's 40th book this fall.

Mowat says the memoir, titled Otherwise, is to focus on the beginnings of his environmental activism and will be his final book.

Now 87, Mowat has written about his childhood, his military service in the Second World War and his studies of wildlife.

The author, who lives in Port Hope, Ont., and Cape Breton, is a supporter of the Green party. The flagship of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was named after him, with his blessing. Last year, he donated 80 hectares of land in Cape Breton to a conservation agency.

He is author of Never Cry Wolf, Sea of Slaughter and A Whale for the Killing.

Mowat is one of Canada's best-known authors and has sold 14 million copies of his books in 25 countries.

He is promising a "surprising revelation" at the end of his last book.

Mowat will launch the book at the International Festival of Authors in Toronto in October and that is planned as his last public literary appearance.

Corrections and Clarifications

  • The flagship of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was named after Farley Mowat, not a Greenpeace vessel, as had been earlier reported. June 11, 2008|5:23 p.m. ET