Customer Reviews

Roanoke: A Novel of the Lost Colony

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Roanoke: A Novel of the Lost Colony is a terrific book. I loved it! Not only is it full of actual facts, such as the state of the colony after it is discovered to be abandoned, but it has actual historic figures: Sir Walter Raleigh, John White, and the first baby born in the new world, Virginia. It was interesting to read Sonia Levitin's view on what might have happened, too.

William is an ordinary English boy, apprenticed to a carpenter. But his master is not kind, and William runs away, branded as not only a runaway, but a thief as well (he is innocent as to the latter charge). He knows he must escape England before the police catch up with him, and when he arrives at an old friend's home, he discovers that a man named John White is going to establish a colony in the new world. This is William's chance, and he takes it.

Soon William finds himself on board a ship, headed for the new world. He must work to pay his passage, but he still enjoys it. He hears tales of the wild savages who hate the white men, and he meets many different people, with many different views of the voyage. He also discovers a stowaway, whom he befriends - Elizabeth.

When they reach the New World, the ship captain tricks them into landing at Roanoke, where indians are rumored to live, instead of peaceful Cheseapeake. William finds himself befriending the "savages" while establishing the new colony. While other colonist fear and hate the indians, William makes friends with them and even falls in love with one. But times are harsh, and not only are the colonists trying to prepare for winter, but they must protect themselves from other indians that hate the white men. William is caught up between the indians fear and hatred of the colonists and the colonists fear and hatred of the indians. Will he ever get the indians and white men to trust each other and get along?

The story is told with much description and it carefully depicts all the characters actions and feelings. It is a wonderful book with almost everything a reader could want. I reccomend it to anyone, especially people interested in history or the mystery of the disappearing Roanoke colony. Ages 9 and up, even grown ups would enjoy it immensely.

"Roanoke- A Novel of the Lost Colony" is about a 16 year old orphan Named William Wythers who lost both his parents and has no one left but his younger sister, Elizabeth. William is considered a beggar, idler, and vagabond. When he finds out there is to be a voyage to the New World, William is eager to go. When they finally arrive, the settlers meet a friendly Indian tribe called Crotoan. William then meets a Crotoan woman named Telana and falls in love. Telana and William have to put up criticism from the other settlers and some of the Indians. The Governor of settlement, John White, returns to England to get more supplies.

When John White finally returns from England with the supplies, he finds that no one from their settlement remains. Nobody knew what happened and we still don't know. This American mystery has come alive in Sonia Levitin's novel of the lost colony of Roanoke.

I have taught middle school social studies for seven years, and after stumbling across this book (on amazon) four years ago I quickly implemented its use in my eighth grade classes. As far as historical fiction goes, no other novel compares. I also use novels such as Chinese Cinderella, Farewell to Manzanar, Dragonwings, A Girl Named Disaster, A Bone From a Dry Sea, and My Brother Sam is Dead, among others, and they are all excellent; Roanoke, however, is in a class of its own.

The characters are well crafted, as is the plot, which seamlessly integrates historical facts about the expedition with the details that Sonia Levitin has woven in order to make the story a complete one. Both "sides" in the story (the English colonists and Native Americans) have positive and negative aspects, and William, the main character, is torn between the two worlds. The complexity of his situation makes for both a gripping read and a rich post-novel discussion.

There are only two true drawbacks about this novel: it is not currently being printed (which should be a crime), and it has not yet been made into a movie.

This book is based on a real happening in America's history, before Jamestown. A whole colony of people sailed from England to settle in the New World, including women and children and teen-agers, like William Wythers, the hero of the story. The fact is, they all vanished without a trace, except for a carving left on a tree. What happened to them? The author gives her own possible solution to this mystery, at the same time building a love story between William and Telana, the beautiful Native American girl. The colonists seem like real people with their prejudices, and longings. At the end the reader is haunted with more thoughts--did William and a few others survive? Were they able to create a new world without hate? Exciting and realistic, written in a style to capture the reader.

We were going to the outer banks this summer and were going to see the Lost Colony play. I did not know anything about the lost colony before reading this book. Sometimes non-fiction is so boring to read so I thought I'd try this fiction novel by Sonia Levitin. I'm super glad I did. Enjoyed the book immensely, as it was an easy read. I learned about the story, the names of the people and a little geography. Was a great thing to read before going on vacation there. Would recommend.

This is an excellent historical fiction novel. I was able to find, buy and enjoy this book quickly using Amzon.com