Customer Reviews

Places in Time: A New Atlas of American History

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

 

 

It does not simply show war battle sites. Historic places like a New England factory town, 1770's Philadelphia, and a slave plantation are also shown. Do not think of this as a map book. Cutaway drawings/paintings with labels show the reader a typical plantation, factory town, a 1950's planned suburb and battle scenes. It is a way of making history accessible and put a personal face on it. It is different in a very good way.

The drawings in this book are three dimensional and quite well done. However, there is NO mention of the earliest European settlements in America North of Florida and the Rio Grande in this book at all. The early Spanish settlements in Florida are ignored and that is, perhaps, understandable because the Spanish presence was somewhat temporary. However, it also ignores Jamestowne Settlement in 1607 and the introduction of African Americans in 1619. Those seminal events didn't happen if you take this book at face value.

It is well accepted that the British Empire began with the settlement of Jamestowne. It is certain that the permanent and some would say decisive presence of Europeans in what was to become the United States and Canada began there. This book ignores those facts and, instead, gives us a rehash of the Plymouth, Mass. mythology of the Pilgrims settlement.

While the addition of more modern locations is useful, that does not compensate for the glaring omissions.

It isn't worth the price of purchase, in my opinion.

What a wonderful book! You can help your middle schooler envision locales of historic interest with these twenty two-page spreads. Pictures use up most of the space and depict people, including children, in typical doings; some cross-sections are employed. The text of several paragraphs describes the place physically, culturally and historically, and sometimes stories are personalized through the experience of a child. Numbered entries point out events or items of interest. Very nicely done and a terrific aid for visual learners.

Presented in chronological order, the sites are: Cahokia, 1200 AD; a Pacific Northwest whaling village, 1490; a pueblo and mission, 1627; New Plymouth, 1627; Charlestown, 1739; a black settlement/fort, 1759; Boonesborough, Kentucky, 1776; battle of Saratoga, 1777; Philadelphia, 1787; a Taos hacienda, 1823; Fort Laramie, 1849; a New England mill town, 1850; a plantation, 1855; Gettysburg, 1863; Abilene, 1871; a wheat farm, 1888; a Chicago mansion, 1893; Ellis Island, 1901; a New York tenement, 1916; a post-WWII housing project, 1953. An index is included.

Very nicely done. Highly recommended.

AWESOME, COOL, EXCITING

This book was a great experience for me. It taught me how life changes . It had information about wars, if you like wars. It's amazing how life changes like when a water-powered turbine powered a belt which produced electricity used to make quilts and cloth.

There is a little square on the page that tells you the year and place in the U.S. that the event took place. It has numbers to tell you what is what in the illustrations.

I loved the part about Ellis Island! Back then there were big mansions. Now a days there are not as many mansions. Read this book to learn about events in history you have never thought about before.

Highly interesting!! Easy to read, and has so much fascinating information!! The Excellent Illustrations are also very very informative!!

Read it and Enjoy it!!! And then surf the 'net to find out even more about some of these places, because this book will definitely pique your interest!!!

Looking for the perfect gift for a youngster that you will enjoy as much as the recipient does? Try one of Buckley & Leacock's fabulous renderings of events in American history. The four books they have written (Kids Make History, Journeys for Freedom, Places in Time and Journeys in Time) weave a richly embroidered and at the same time historically accurate tapestry of the story of our nation's founding and continuing development. The authors have fastidiously researched and presented narratives that explain why we are proud to be Americans, with detailed maps and illustrations that are informative and entertaining accompaniments. These are books to be read again and again, cherished and kept forever.