Customer Reviews

Beyond the Sea of Ice: The Voyages of Henry Hudson (Great Explorers)

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This is a well written, engaging and thorough account of Henry Hudson's travels. The art is a good as the writing. We used it to lay the groundwork for our study of the history of Dutch influence on American civics and the colonies in North America. It's definitely worth spending part of your homeschooling budget on this book.

The main thing that I want to make clear in this review is the target audience. This is a nicely illustrated account of Hudson's voyages, but the fact that it is illustrated may mislead some into thinking it is for younger children. The reading level of this book is middle school; a Flesch-Kincaid grade level based on four paragraphs rated it as a 7th grade reading level. It's a very well-written text, with rich, descriptive language, but it is for more advanced readers. In fact, it is in-depth enough for high school students, as long as they won't be offended by the illustrations. The illustrations make the text more engaging, especially for the visual learner. My 9-year-old reads on a high school level and enjoys non-fiction. He said that he would rate this book as 4 1/2 stars.

Elementary children, especially upper elementary students, may be interested in this book as a read-aloud. I read it with my 7 1/2-year-old and 6-year-old in two parts, providing plenty of explanations as we went along. They were able to learn some from it, but it was definitely somewhat over their heads. I'm sure they will get much more from it in a few years, but we were studying the explorers now.

The text begins with a few pages of background, explaining the reason for searching for an ocean part to the Far East, the demand for spices, etc. There's a nice map of all of Hudson's Voyages. It folds out, and if left unfolded, it sticks out to the side and is a handy reference as you read through each of Hudson's voyages. Most 2-page spreads have several paragraphs of text and 1 full page color illustration, though some spreads only have a partial page map.

I would highly recommend this book for homeschooling families or parents of school children studying the explorers. For independent reading, it's best suited for middle school and high school age. For elementary students, it may be appropriate as a read-aloud.

Henry Hudson falls into the second rank of great explorers. We know his name today principally because his last name graces the Hudson River and Hudson's Bay. Yet unlike the first tier of great explorers, Henry Hudson never really experienced success. The Northwest passage to Asia was not discovered until the Twentieth Century. Indeed Hudson ended his last expedition abandoned by his crew along the desolate shores of Hudson's Bay. "Beyond the Bay" is as much a story of folly as it is a tale of exploration. The book is well written and gives the reader a good sense of just how large and unknown America was at the time of Hudson's expeditions. Also of note, the author does not sugar coat Hudson's story. He is presented warts and all to young readers. In the final analysis this is a good book about a second tier explorer.

We purchased this to augment our New York State study. I first saw it at Barnes and Noble and could not put it down. Both the prose and the illustrations (Fernando Rangel) drew me in. I couldn't wait to get home and order the book from Amazon.

Joan Elizabeth Goodman is not only an excellent writer, but also one of integrity. She does not portray Hudson as some god-like hero/explorer/discoverer. She portrays him (and his crew) with straightforward honesty. She does not castigate them, nor does she hide their less than honorable actions.

When I was in school so many of the explorers were described in very glorious terms. I was alway so disappointed when I found out that the history that I'd been taught was not the complete truth. I would have preferred seeing history & those who moved history as they were. The good, the neutral, and the ugly. Children can handle the truth. Better to find out the truth when you're young (in terms children can handle, of course), than to find out that you've been fed half truths and lies. This book fits the bill.

In conclusion, I learned more about Henry Hudson and his voyages from this book than I had ever learned in all my years of schooling (college included). I think the actions that saddened me the most was how the "civilized" Europeans treated the Native Americans with such contempt. The Native Americans were hospitable and the treatment was not necessarily reciprocated. In one instance Hudson invited some Mahican leaders on their ship and got them drunk to see if they were planning any treacherous actions.

I highly recommend this book to those who like to read history as it happened, not as we might wish it happened.

Kudos to Goodman, Rangel, and Mikaya Press!