Customer Reviews

The New Nation: 1789-1850 A History of US Book 4

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My daughter read most of this series in 8th grade as her home-school history text. She really enjoyed it. It sparked a deeper interest in history for her. I have just bought the first four books which we were missing so that my 7th and 9th graders can read the whole series in this next school year. I think these books tell the history in more of a story form and go into more detail than regular textbooks. That is what makes it so interesting for students.

Joy Hakim is truly magical in her telling of history. My 4th grader is understanding and enjoying History. Mrs. Hakim has a wonderful way in weaving our history without going into too much detail but letting you know that there is more out there if you want to research an event further.

I thought this book was really good, however not for the age group I intended it for. I initially thought this would be a good home school book for history for my 3rd/4th grader. It is a little deep and not what I expected. If you have an advanced student this may do the trick. I was looking for a book that would be engaging for a younget student with interesting facts and written on a younger child's level. Don't get me wrong they are a great series just not what I was looking for. They may come in handy as a refernece book or if we want to read more on a certain topic, however for day to day schooling I'll be getting something else.

I have been reading this book every night for days with my 2nd grader who is a history buff. For younger readers who may not be familiar with more abstract vocabulary, the book takes the time to explain it. For example, one chapter starts with "What is a paradox?" and describes the central paradoxes of the young United States. One paradox was, how can a nation founded on "liberty for all" also allow slavery? It sparks a lot of interesting discussions, and works well if you are reading the book together. Another interesting discussion was the idea of "King Cotton", and how that had as terrible an effect as the real kings of old. It's an abstract metaphor that provokes higher-level thinking. The book has lots of first-person accounts (original sources) and interesting side-notes. In short, a well-written account of U.S. history that will leave your young reader interested in learning more.