Customer Reviews

Explorers Who Got Lost

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Teachers and intermediate aged students will find this book full of interesting information about many well known explorers. What they won't find are exaggerated claims, found in some social studies text books, of the bravery and importance of well known explorers. Written in interesting prose, each chapter of this book reveals the foibles, faults and mission of an explorer. A valuable resource for teachers, this book will help balance dry, older or current textbook writing that rarely hints at the darker side of history. Students will be surprised by the human qualities, both light and dark, of these historical figures. This book provides information but allows them to make up their own mind about the importance of these explorers' role in history.

This book contains short biographies of 8 important explorers who "discovered" the Americas. These are ideal for the teacher who wants to know more than the textbook. This is also an excellent resource to use in class for students to learn more about the explorers. Students could use this resource in order to create "baseball" cards about the explorers. Or simply to use for students who want to know more about the explorers they learn about in class. The map inside the front cover is one that every student should have in his or her Social Studies notebook.

We really enjoyed this book which is chock full of information on a handful of explorers. It does only cover the era of the European Discovery of the Americas (and a little on Africa)...too bad there aren't a few more people included or another book covering different regions/time periods. While the explorers are presented in a straightforward manner (as opposed to the clever and attention-grabbing books like You Wouldn't Want to Sail with Christopher Columbus!: Uncharted Waters You'd Rather Not Cross, or History News: Explorers News), we found it interesting and readable -- definitely not as dry as a textbook. Of course, each explorer was covered more in depth than many other books for children, but again it was accessible and not presented as endless mind-numbing facts. It is well organized and would be great for a research project or biography presentation. It begins with the early 1400's with Portugal & Prince Henry the Navigator, touches on the slave trade & tools for navigation, and exploring Africa. From there it moves on to Columbus, Cabot, Magellan "discovering", and exploring the western hemisphere. Also included are Verrazano, Cartier, and Hudson and their searches for a better passage to Asia (so up through the early 1600's). Each explorer's bio begins with some background on the person, era and region. The purpose or motivations of the journey, its circumstances, and the consequences of their journeys seem to be presented in an unbiased and well-researched way. The back of the book includes a nice chronology, and both the bibliography and index are extensive. Well Done! I agree with the other reviewer who said the map was invaluable...cute and highlights many of the lesser-known places that are mentioned in the stories.

This book was awesome. My kids loved to hear about the adventures, and risks that the explorers had to take. It provided a great opportunity to have them find places on our world map. They not only became familiar with important people in history, but also became familiar with the geography of the world. Great book. I highly recommend it.

I enjoyed this book very much, I travel a great deal and therefore am very appreciative to good authors and only give five stars to those I believe tell a good story, have a great ending and have me wanting more. I don't always need all the sex or blood and gore, sometimes a romance, a love story or a drama is what I need. I highly recommend this book. And have recommended it to our book club in New York and Aspen,..I also recommend reading....The Boy He Loved - Obsession Into Darkness (Gay Suspense), Reflections In The Looking Glass - A Murder Mystery That Will Surprise you (Gay Murder Mystery), My Gay Socks (Gay Romance)and From Boys to Men (Gay Classic), you may also want to read,The Crane & Pelican (Gay Romance).