Spring House (The Westward Sagas, Book 1) [Paperback]

David Bowles (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 2006

The Westward Sagas tell the stories of the lives of Scots-Irish families struggling to find happiness on the new frontier. Spring House, the first book of the series, begins in North Carolina in 1762 and paints a vivid picture of colonial life in the backwoods of the North State. Adam Mitchell fought to protect his family and save his farm, but his home was destroyed by British troops in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, and his corn fields were turned into fields of death.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

David Bowles has always been interested in history and genealogy. He started writing stories of his family to ensure that his descendants had accurate records of their history, using his imagination and creativity to fill in the gaps of what might have happened when the details weren't available. He created dialogue and scenes to add true life drama to the Westward Sagas from colonial days to the settlement of the West to pass on his family's storytelling legacy.

Product Details

• Paperback: 164 pages
• Publisher: Plum Creek Press, Inc.; First Edition first Printing edition (March 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977748405
• ISBN-13: 978-0977748402
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,889,233 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

David Bowles, a native of Austin, Texas, lives in San Antonio with his best friend and constant companion Lulubelle, a yellow Lab. Always interested in history and genealogy, he started writing stories of his family to ensure that his son, daughter, and three grandchildren had accurate records of the family history. However, while the original versions, written in narrative textbook style, did maintain the records, they didn't maintain the interest of the readers. So he used his imagination and creativity to fill in the gaps of what might have happened when the details weren't available. He created dialogue and scenes to add true life drama to the Westward Sagas from colonial days to the settlement of the West. He hopes these stories are as exciting to his readers as the stories told by the previous generations of his family were to him.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Page turner!, June 4, 2007

By 

Janet Conner "Book lover" (Bradenton, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spring House (The Westward Sagas, Book 1) (Paperback)

I was hooked at the first sentence. Usually I read to fall asleep, but two hours later I was still eager to know how it ended. I look forward to more in this series. It's not often I find such an engrosing historial novel.
I passed it on to my husband and he bumped it up to the top of the stack of books he wants to read when I told him I how much I enjoyed it.

Congrats on winning the National Indie award for 2007. I can see why and hope that the next one takes the prize as well. The combination of personal and American history makes David Bowles' novel both entertaining and informative. Teachers should put this on the summer reading list.

Can't wait to read Adam's Daughter, and hope the series continues to the present day.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Western Literature for all ages, May 23, 2007

By 

Virginia Gonzales (Santa Cruz, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spring House (The Westward Sagas, Book 1) (Paperback)

After reading a chapter of this book on Amazon's online books, I can't help but be reminded of grade school. It brings back memories of Oregon Trail and watching historical Western movies in class. Not only is it appropriate for all ages, but I really believe that this type of book would be excellent required reading materials for grade and middle schools. Children and teens will be captivated by the imagery and stories depicted in the novel, and will be introduced to an important historical period at the same time. Excellent addition to any school curriculum or just for pure fun!

5.0 out of 5 stars Genealogy Comes to Life, January 6, 2011

By 

Sheryl Frank - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Spring House (The Westward Sagas, Book 1) (Paperback)

I have been trying to research a family line for years and found Spring House on David Bowles website WestwardSagas.com after searching "Adam Mitchell". What fun it was to watch family history come to life. The story along with the sources provided in "Spring House" was a researcher's dream. I appreciated the author's unique way of weaving the factual history into a spell-binding fact/fiction story.