A fine tool for any child interested in history as well as for classroom, school, and public libraries.
Firsthand accounts of World War II, many collected by modern children.
Though the second world war has been over for more than 70 years, its wide scope still comes most to life in the stories of those who lived through it. The British children’s newspaper First News began collecting these accounts; published here along with others, they offer a comprehensive picture of the war, from soldiers, civilians, and children on all sides, both Allied and Axis. Perhaps due to its British origins, the preponderance of contributions are British, and the war in the European theater dominates, but the African campaign and the war in the Pacific are covered. Resistance efforts and the experiences of women during the war are each covered in separate chapters. The white American navigator of the Enola Gay recounts what it was like to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, while a Japanese man tells what it was like to be an 8-year-old boy in the city that morning. Because children conduct the interviews, most of the short accounts are honest but not brutally graphic. Vintage photographs illustrate every page, and indexes and a glossary allow the book to be used as a true reference resource.
A fine tool for any child interested in history as well as for classroom, school, and public libraries. (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: March 20, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9492-0
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
In 1910, Pascal D’Angelo and his father left the harsh Abruzzi region of Italy to escape its impossible poverty and journey to the United States; Pascal was 16 years old. Murphy, a graceful narrator of history, presents the life of the peasant as he journeyed through life in the new country. He never became wealthy or even comfortable, but did leave an impression with his poetry—and this from a man who became literate in English as an adult, largely self-taught (and librarians will be delighted to know that they helped him). D’Angelo also wrote an autobiography, Son of Italy, relating to life as an immigrant and the hard—largely pick-and-shovel—work he did to earn a scant living. Such a telling should resonate when readers think about why people come to a new country where they do not speak the language, do not know the customs, and too often are alone, even (or especially) today. The protagonist does not come through as a sharp personality; he is somewhat shadowy against the times and places of his life. He stands out as a symbol rather than a full person. But his accomplishments are certainly large. Archival photos are interesting but sometimes captions are non-indicative; what do they mean? When and where were they taken? There are two photos of D’Angelo. As usual, Murphy provides details that help set the story. A biography of a common man that is also the history of a civilization and its times. (index and bibliography) (Biography. 9-14)
Pub Date: Nov. 6, 2000
ISBN: 0-395-77610-4
Page Count: 162
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
If only Benedict Arnold had died sooner. Had he been killed at the Battle of Saratoga, he’d be one of the greatest heroes of American history, and “we’d celebrate his life as one of the best action stories we have.” Instead, he survived and went on to betray the colonies and die in shame. Sheinkin sees Arnold as America’s “original action hero” and succeeds in writing a brilliant, fast-paced biography that reads like an adventure novel. Opening with the hanging of Major Andre, the British officer who plotted with Arnold to turn West Point over to the British, the story sticks to the exciting illustrative scenes of Arnold’s career—the invasion of Canada, assembling America’s first naval fleet, the Battle of Valcour Island, the Battle of Saratoga and the plot with Andre, whose parallel narrative ends in a bungled mission, his execution and Arnold’s dishonor. The author’s obvious mastery of his material, lively prose and abundant use of eyewitness accounts make this one of the most exciting biographies young readers will find. (source notes, quotation notes, maps [not seen]) (Biography. 11-14)
Pub Date: Nov. 9, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59643-486-8
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2010
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