Voices from Colonial America: Massachusetts 1620-1776: 1620 - 1776 Book

This impressively designed young adult history pictorial from the graphic masters of National Geographic is just the thing for any budding New England history buff.

Mildred Hart - Children's Literature

The many maps, engravings, woodcuts, and portraits, as well as the quotations from letters and speeches of the period fulfill the author's goal of updating information about the people, places, and events from the early history of Massachusetts. How the values and beliefs of the English shaped the new colonial society and resulted in action which today's readers may find strange; how Puritan settlements became dependent on a world of commerce and were forced to accommodate Britain's 18th century empire; how political disputes between colony and crown affected paper money, trade, and religion, and led to the resistance of much of the population resulting in the creation of the American identity--all of these are part of lessons from early Massachusetts. Specific details of some topics and some individual people are amplified and emphasized by being set apart in a slightly tinted inset with a distinctive border. The inset usually includes direct quotes from letters and documents, which are in italics and easily identified. Many words and phrases are explained on the page where the word or phrase is first used. This format enables the reader to understand the text without the interruption of turning to the index or glossary for every new topic, thus maintaining the flow of the story. The "voices" are of both well-known people like John Smith and also of relative unknowns like Mary Rolandson, a woman settler who was captured by Indians and wrote about her experience. Mrs. Rolandson is also the subject of a "Profile," one of the insets which are not identified as such in the index but which give, in concise fashion, information about a wide range of topics, from John Smith's article written in1616 in praise of the new land to the court ruling in 1781 that ended slavery in the colony. This book is part of the "Voices from Colonial America" series and has the asset of presenting a lot of information in a format that will not threaten a reluctant reader but will retain the interest of a competent reader. It is recommended. 2005, National Geographic, and Ages 12 up.