Customer Reviews

The Captive Princess: A Story Based on the Life of Young Pocahontas (Daughters of the Faith Series)

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Everyone knows the story of Pocahontas - or at least "a" story of Pocahontas. Pocahontas WAS intelligent, capable, curious, and brave, but real life isn't as palatable or black-and-white as the Disney-ized version of the story.

Wendy Lawton continues her "Daughters of Faith" series with "The Captive Princess," a respectful portrayal of Pocahontas and the people of her world, a story that recognizes the ambiguity of life. As the great Powhatan's daughter, Pocahontas enjoys both special privilege and responsibility within her family and her tribe. When Englishmen come to the Powhatans' shores, Pocahontas is both curious and wary. She knows there will be eagerness and distrust from both those new and those familiar to the land. She works to bring peace and trust between the two, but is betrayed. As she struggles to come to terms with the "grayness" all she has experienced, Pocahontas learns, in the words of a minister who befriends her, that "we battle between what we long to be and what we fall back into." When Pocahontas learns to accept God's forgiveness, she learns how to forgive herself as well.

The Captive Princess is a must read for fans of the "Daughters of Faith" series and new readers alike. Wendy Lawton's well-researched attention to historic details and her always present glossary of terms make "The Captive Princess" the perfect choice for a fun read or as part of a larger study of American history.

Most of us studied Pocahontas and the Jamestown settlement in American History. I enjoyed going back in time with Wendy Lawton and getting to know the young Pocahontas even better. Lawton does an excellent job bringing the young princess to life and makes learning the customs and language of the Powhatan Indians and the early Jamestown settlers an enjoyable experience. History has never been so fun. Pocahontas' compassion, spirit and faith will inspire you.

Lawton has written several of these historical stories based on the childhood of characters in history. They could easily become "bigger than life" or full of sentimental overkill. Instead, Mrs. Lawton pulls each reader into the heart of the story and the person,and I have come to trust her impeccable research even as I am swept along in the story. My favorite stories as a child were those of Native Americans, and this is one of my favorites of the Daughters of Faith series.

I have now given several sets of these books to elementary libraries and encourage you to do the same. If you're looking for stories to trust, remain true to the historical person, and will be a gift for a young reader, do get these books. With so much "revisionist" history now going around, this one you can trust that remains solidly in truth and historical aspects.

This story is based upon the life of young Pocahontas. Wendy Lawton follows the same format of using a glossary to help readers with words that are important to the story and that need to be explained. Her writing again is engaging and interesting. I could picture what Pocahontas' world was like. I have to admit that I knew very little about Pocahontas until I read this story. It again is a historical novel based on what is known about Pocahontas' life. I was drawn in more by Mary Bunyan's story, but both stories are good reads. They are books that I would feel comfortable with my daughters reading. I know that they will remember who Pocahontas was after reading this story. Heart of Dakota's reading program also recommends this book as part of their 4th-5th grade optional selections for girls. Knowing that confirms to me that this book is appropriate for girls in grades 4-8.

There are 8 books in Ms. Lawton's Daughters of the Faith series. They are each set within 1600-1950. These books could be a great supplement to your homeschool history curriculum or reading for historical/biographical fiction. Some of the stories, I suspect, are more based upon fact than others simply because there are some figures in history that more is known about than others. If you're not homeschooling, I would also recommend these books to parents who have children in school and are looking for good books for their daughters to read.

I highly recommend this series for girls in this age range. Yes, I did say "girls". I happen to be one of those people that believes girls are more likely to be interested in some books than boys--and that the same is true in reverse about other books.

Please note that I received complimentary copies of these books for review from Moody Publishing.

Not only is this book great for teenagers but I myself really enjoyed it as well. I recommend this book to anyone... regardless of their age.