These report-oriented lives of ten eminent early scientists combine what scanty biographical details have survived the centuries with clear statements of each subject’s contributions. Bowing to tradition, the arrangement is chronological, beginning with Pythagoras in the sixth century b.c., ending with al-Khwarizmi, who brought the zero into western mathematics in the ninth century a.d., and including among the usual suspects both the librarian Eratosthenes and Hypatia, a renowned Alexandrian scholar. The authors draw their information from a few secondary sources, to judge from the endnotes; still, as a supplement to encyclopedias or such Eurocentric collective biographies as Philip Cave’s Giants of Science (1959), this will find a place in library collections. (b&w reproductions, index, not seen, notes) (Biography. 10-13)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7660-1111-9
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Enslow
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An outstanding and readable introduction to the social history of westward migration and homesteading in the US in the 184070s. The text of this entry in the Settling the West series is a compilation of perspicaciously selected excerpts from the diaries and letters of settlers, mainly women, stitched into a continuous narrative. It begins with the preparations for the journey, follows the migrants across the plains and over the mountains, then describes the process of homesteading in all its facets. Since most of the information in the book comes from documents of an intimate nature, plenty of attention is paid to the life of the spirit, leaving readers with a vivid impression of the psychology of the settler. Apart from punctuating the narrative here and there with historical road signs, Harvey remains in the background; he supplies introductions and transitions, but allows the sources to speak for themselves, and ``politically correct'' editorializing is minimal. Accompanied by full-color and black-and-white photographs and illustrations, a coherent, balanced picture of the homesteader. (maps, notes, further reading, index) (Nonfiction. 10-13)
Pub Date: July 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-8050-2999-0
Page Count: 96
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1995
BOOK REVIEW
In The Young Oxford History of African Americans series, a thoroughly researched, thoughtfully written history starting with the first Africans on the continent to American blacks during the Revolution. The subtitle, ``African Americans 16171776,'' is misleading: Wood (for adults, Black Majority, 1974, etc.) begins around 1500, with the emergence of the Spanish slave trade. From there, he traces the role of Africans in the earliest settlements in North America and describes the different policies towards them under Spanish, French, Dutch, and British jurisdiction. The rest of the book—illustrated with black-and-white maps, reproductions, and photographs—deals with the early history of American slavery, specifically with the institutionalization of racism. At the same time, Wood looks at the culture and everyday life of slave communities, illustrating his narrative with a number of intriguing biographies. While his selection of facts and figures is illuminating throughout, what makes the work a particular pleasure are Wood's inspired discussions; he ably links facts and puts them into larger contexts for readers. An obscure chapter in American history, rendered vividly. (chronology, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-19-508700-3
Page Count: 125
Publisher: Oxford Univ.
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1995
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