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CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS

Name: CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
Author: Mario Di Giovanni
ISBN: 978-1-947431-08-9

HIS LIFE AND DISCOVERIES

by Mario Di Giovanni ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 13, 2017

A thorough, though not untroubled, understanding of Columbus’ adventures.

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Di Giovanni (Flat and Corrugated Diaphragm Design Handbook, 1982) presents an extensive history of Christopher Columbus and his travels.

Columbus was born in Genoa in 1451. As far as the historical record shows, the future explorer was largely self-educated and began his sailing career at a young age. In 1492, he famously sailed with three ships under the patronage of Spain, ostensibly to find a western route to Asia. The author explains this journey in detail, including the expedition’s encounters with many native peoples, and asserts that, for all of Columbus’ skills as a navigator, he truly believed that he had found a passage to the Far East. But the story doesn’t end there; Di Giovanni takes readers along on Columbus’ other sea travels, his eventual final return to Spain, and even tells of the demise of his descendants. The journeys of Columbus were not short, and readers will be struck by just how lengthy and frightening sea travel was in the 15th century. Sheer terror plays a big part in this story, and not just for the sailors who dared to test the high seas. The often friendly native people that Columbus met didn’t fare well, and the author avers that “their repeated acts of generosity accelerated their own enslavement and eventual decimation.” Nevertheless, Di Giovanni writes with an affection for Columbus, pointing out that the captain overcame many hardships “all with resilience and acceptance, always trusting in God.” Although this reverence for the explorer may seem dated, the book progresses easily and soberly. The author appears to consider Columbus a hero, but he still includes less savory material; an oft-cited and chilling passage, written by Columbus’ shipmate, Michele de Cuneo, shows how unashamedly brutal the age of exploration could be, as he captured a native girl that “Columbus allowed him to keep as a slave.” Readers likely won’t find Columbus to be endearing in the end, but they’ll probably have learned a great deal about what it meant to venture out on a vast, unforgiving ocean.

A thorough, though not untroubled, understanding of Columbus’ adventures.

Pub Date: Nov. 13, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-947431-08-9

Page Count: 640

Publisher: Barbera Foundation, Inc.

Review Posted Online: April 16, 2018

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.