A history that excels at admiration but fails at overall accuracy.
Women and men on horseback fought, explored, performed in rodeos, enforced laws, and helped to shape the American West.
In his author’s note, Lowe states that he intends to celebrate “a shared history of the American West,” which was “a melting pot every bit as much as the cities of the East Coast.” In spite of their suffering, and dealing with “unbelievable conditions and national scorn,” Native Americans, African Americans, Chinese Americans, and Latinx people “helped create the country that we live in today.” What follows are capsule entries on cowboys and cowgirls from the previously mentioned backgrounds. Each is accompanied by a colorful, full-page portrait of the person, often with a big smile. Also included are pages on dress, Chinese railroad workers, and buffalo soldiers. The entry for Levi Strauss does not mention his Judaism, but it is followed by a two-page spread on Jews. The information on the Chinese railroad workers states that they “were genuine heroes who helped make this country a better place to live,” but this statement lacks information on and sensitivity to Indigenous peoples, and there is no mention of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. Also, the article on rodeo star Fox Hastings tells readers that she was not only a “true beauty,” but also a “genuine daredevil”—leaving them to ponder if the two are otherwise mutually exclusive.
A history that excels at admiration but fails at overall accuracy. (further reading) (Nonfiction. 9-12)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-7336335-1-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Bushel & Peck Books
Review Posted Online: March 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care.
In 1977, the oil carrier Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of oil into a formerly pristine Alaskan ocean inlet, killing millions of birds, animals, and fish. Despite a cleanup, crude oil is still there.
The Winters foretold the destructive powers of the atomic bomb allusively in The Secret Project (2017), leaving the actuality to the backmatter. They make no such accommodations to young audiences in this disturbing book. From the dark front cover, on which oily blobs conceal a seabird, to the rescuer’s sad face on the back, the mother-son team emphasizes the disaster. A relatively easy-to-read and poetically heightened text introduces the situation. Oil is pumped from the Earth “all day long, all night long, / day after day, year after year” in “what had been unspoiled land, home to Native people // and thousands of caribou.” The scale of extraction is huge: There’s “a giant pipeline” leading to “enormous ships.” Then, crash. Rivers of oil gush out over three full-bleed wordless pages. Subsequent scenes show rocks, seabirds, and sea otters covered with oil. Finally, 30 years later, animals have returned to a cheerful scene. “But if you lift a rock… // oil / seeps / up.” For an adult reader, this is heartbreaking. How much more difficult might this be for an animal-loving child?
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care. (author’s note, further reading) (Informational picture book. 9-12)Pub Date: March 31, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3077-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
A hardworking addition to U.S. history shelves.
In 1776, some of the most respected men in Great Britain’s American Colonies signed the Declaration of Independence, a revolutionary—but not necessarily transparent—document.
Although the declaration is one of the key documents of American history, its sometimes-archaic language may mystify young citizens of the 21st century. After a few pages of introductory information that describes the conflicts faced by colonists before the Revolutionary War, this effort presents the declaration line by line, explaining the concepts, defining confusing words and ideas, and illuminating the intent of the signers in the context of the time. Occasionally, in sections headed “Think Deeper,” the author asks pointed, thoughtful questions on a variety of issues that have never been fully resolved in the past 245 years, without devolving into revisionist history. The format places original text on verso with the translation on recto, but clever design keeps readers engaged. The double-page spreads are neatly laid out, many including portraits of Founding Fathers presented against appealing, brightly colored backgrounds that vary from spread to spread. A variety of maps, cartoon characters, and period illustrations extend the text. With a reading level appropriate to the upper grade schoolers who are often introduced to this tumultuous period of history, this engaging and surprisingly entertaining effort seems like the perfect choice to accompany and expand lesson plans. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A hardworking addition to U.S. history shelves. (bibliography) (Nonfiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-638190-48-6
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Bushel & Peck Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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