The Plymouth Thanksgiving, A Doubleday Reinforced Library Eddition

Leonard Weisgard (Author, Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In this simply prose and wonderfully illustrated book, Leonard Weisgard tells the story of the first pilgrims who sailed for America in 1620. The journey, the devastating first winter, the friendship of Chief Massasoit, and of course Squanto in the First Thanksgiving.

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Doubleday & Company, Inc. (1967)
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000XRZE8S
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,560,732 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fine Addition to the Thanksgiving Reading Basket, November 25, 2009

By	Shanna A. Gonzalez "eyelevelbooks.com" (Gaithersburg, MD) - See all my reviews

The Plymouth Thanksgiving tells the story of the Plymouth settlers in their long journey, first to Holland and then to the New World, and of their long struggle to survive the first year in Massachusetts. This account is primarily based on William Bradford's diary. It is a readable, straightforward retelling of the events leading up to the American Thanksgiving, targeted for readers ages 4-8.

It is written and illustrated by Leonard Weisgard, who won the Caldecott Medal in 1947 for his illustrations of The Little Island (Dell Picture Yearling) and, like most children's books of this era, its well-drawn pictures are printed in few colors. This lends the story a certain charming simplicity, and the illustrations serve to supplement rather than carry the story.

The only flaw of this book is that in the description of the feast the Indian participants are three times referred to as "braves, squ*ws and children." This is probably be a reflection of the terms used in historical documents, but the terms "brave" and "squ*w" in recent decades have taken on strong racist overtones, and the word "squ*w" now carries a sexual connotation. If you own the book, it would be very simple to correct the phrase to "men, women and children" with some white-out.

This charming story is unfortunately out of print, but is still available on the used-book market. It's a fine addition to the holiday reading basket.

5.0 out of 5 stars The book for Thanksgiving, November 12, 2007

By	jillpettis "Praiseworthythings" (Kansas) - See all my reviews

This is one of my most favorite Thanksgiving books. The text is based on information from William Bradford's diary. The illustrations are unique and beautiful. Passenger lists and a cut away picture of the Mayflower are included. If I only read one book at Thanksgiving to my children this would be it.