The story of our tallest unknown folk hero, from his early days in colonial western ``Pennsylvanny'' to his epic battle with the young Paul Bunyan. Child of the inventor of the Lancaster rifle (illustrated in a left-handed version) and other home-grown Pennsylvania products, Jacob grew up to play no small role in history: among other exploits, he is credited with single- handedly driving the French from Fort Duquesne, a turning point in the French and Indian War; suggesting a design for the US flag based on George Washington's pajamas; making Mike Fink the victim of the first April Fool's joke; urging Audubon to add a few birds to his paintings; and inspiring John Chapman, later known as Johnny Peachfuzz—no, Johnny Peanutshell...Johnny Apricotpit? Something like that—the nameless narrator can't quite remember. The tale is told in ``countrified'' prose and illustrated with small, simple line drawings. Readers can absorb a fair dose of history while enjoying the droll adventures of this animal-loving, generally peaceable giant. (Fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1992
ISBN: 1-56412-003-1
Page Count: 164
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1992
In a splendid retelling of a great story, Ambrose chronicles Lewis and Clark's epic 1803-06 journey across the continent and back. Thomas Jefferson, more than anyone else, helped to effect the dream of a transcontinental US. As noted historian Ambrose (Univ. of New Orleans; D-Day, 1994, etc.) recounts, Jefferson's first great accomplishment in this regard was the Louisiana Purchase. His second was the dispatching of a US Army "Corps of Discovery" under his neighbor and friend, Captain Meriwether Lewis, to travel by land to the Pacific Ocean in search of a waterway to the West. Lewis, partner William Clark, and their 30-man expeditionary force recorded hundreds of species of birds, plants, and animals not previously known to Western science; mapped the interiors of the country; established ties with Indian tribes of the Northern Plains and the Northwest; and set the stage for the exploitation of the western country, particularly in the fur trade. Also, by Ambrose's account, Lewis and Clark's well-meaning ignorance and diplomatic maladroitness set the tone for early American relationships with Native Americans. Despite their close relationships with some Indians, Lewis and Clark persisted in absurd beliefs about them, some of which were subscribed to by Jefferson, as well (e.g., that Indians were descendants of a long-lost tribe of Welshmen). Although the expedition was a great success and fame and fortune followed, Lewis, now drinking heavily and suffering setbacks in love and politics, fell into a deep depression and committed suicide in 1809. The author speculates that he might have considered his great expedition a failure because the land remained unexploited by Americans. A fascinating glimpse of a pristine, vanished America and the beginning of the great and tragic conquest of the West.
Pub Date: Feb. 15, 1996
ISBN: 0-684-81107-3
Page Count: 608
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1995
GENERAL HISTORY | UNITED STATES | WORLD | MILITARY | HISTORY
SEEN & HEARD
An interesting foreword launches this first volume— summarizing 4,000 years of Jewish history—in the Holocaust series. Altman introduces Judaism as the world's oldest surviving religion, presents Abraham as the first monotheist, questions Christian monotheism, and includes a brief summary of Jewish persecutions through the ages. Black-and-white reproductions, cartoons, and etchings often depict images of hate and intolerance; back matter includes chronologies to help readers gain a context for the material, and suggested readings for further study. That's fortunate, for the scope of the series, discussed in the preface, is broad; this first volume—an ambitious undertaking that falls prey to oversimplification—does not stand alone, but will require supplementary texts to give readers a real overview of history. (b&w photos, illustrations, maps, chronologies, glossary, notes, further reading, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1997
ISBN: 1-56711-200-5
Page Count: 80
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1997
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