Diary of an Early American Boy [Paperback]

Eric Sloane (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 12, 1984

Part the diary of Noah Blake, who was 15 in 1805, and part a re-creation of the life that a boy in his circumstances would have lived, this book is a loving tribute to a vanished way of life. Profusely illustrated, it will give its readers a sense of participation in the past that is all too rare in conventional histories.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Part the diary of Noah Blake, who was 15 in 1805, and part a re-creation of the life that a boy in his circumstances would have lived, this book is a loving tribute to a vanished way of life. Profusely illustrated, it will give its readers a sense of participation in the past that is all too rare in conventional histories.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (June 12, 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345321006
• ISBN-13: 978-0345321008
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.3 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,359,308 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A found diary, beautifully embellished by Sloane., January 20, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Diary of an Early American Boy (Paperback)

I read this book while visiting my mother in her Connecticut country home. It was the perfect place to read it as I suddenly made sense of the street names like Old Mill Road and Stoneboat Road. Eric Sloane paints an intoxicating portrait of a boy's coming of age and falling in love with the girl next door (even if next door was over the meadow and through the woods) in the earliest years of the 19th century. Life was a focus on survival, when your days were spent working your land for all the fruits that it bears to sustain you and your family. Close bonds form with neighbors and community is not only important, but a way of life. Aside from being a true (if admittedly embellished) story, it is an intense study of life at that time. How we made and used our tools; the many properties and uses of wood; how the farmer's almanac was an indispensible item in every household. You learn great little triva facts in every chapter, such as... Did you know every house was allowed only ten panes of window glass... if they had more, they would have to pay a stiff tax on each pane.

The book opens with our young protagonist lying in bed, staring out through four brand new panes of glass that his parents got him for his birthday, watching the snow fall. He is as happy as can be for having these simple panes of glass. Nintendo pales in comparison.

Read it! It's short and well-paced. The boy's slowly evolving love story with the neighbor's summer guest is an involving, if underplayed, spine.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent! I loved the intriguing drawings., March 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Diary of an Early American Boy (Paperback)

This is an excellent book for kids and adults. The book is fully illustrated with drawings that detail how things were built and how they worked. They capture kid's attention better than "Where's Waldo?", but unlike that meaningless book, there's a lot to be learned from this little gem! Lance Greenlee

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Early American Material Culture, September 2, 2005

By 

Marco Antonio Abarca (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Diary of an Early American Boy (Paperback)

While rumaging through an old house, Eric Sloane came across the diary of 15 year old Noah Blake. Written in 1805, the diary has short entries about Noah's life on a farm. Sloane uses these brief notations as a starting point to recreate a compelling story about farm life on the American frontier. Eric Soane's talent as an illustrator takes this book to the next level. It is one thing to read about early American life and it is another level of pleasure to see beautiful illustrations that explain the material culture in which Noah Blake lived.

The audience for this book is very large. Written at a high school freshman level, this book will be of interest to anyone interested in learning how common people lived during the Federalist Period. This book will also appeal to all those who are interested in the material culture of 19th Century America. Sloane provides beautiful illustrations of how things like a water mill worked or how a simple wooden bridge was built.

Personally, my interest in American vernacular architecture. I loved this book because Eric Sloane has done a masterful job of explaining early American building techniques. I knew that one had to be very knowledgable to survive 200 years ago and this book only reinforces my admiration for our ancestors. For those who like these types of books, check out the illustrated works of Edwin Tunis, another talented artist with an interest in material culture.