Customer Reviews

Who's Saying What in Jamestown, Thomas Savage?

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Thirteen years old and orphaned, Thomas Savage left England in 1607 to seek a different way of life in the new settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. On the first supply ship to support the newly established Jamestown settlement, he worked as a cabin boy for Captain Christopher Newport. Shortly after reaching Jamestown, Newport and Captain John Smith asked Thomas to live with the Algonquian Indians in order to learn their language and become an interpreter and message carrier between the Indians and the English settlers. This fascinating book, based on historical fiction, describes Thomas's experiences living with the Algonquians and befriending the children, including Pocahontas, as well as their King Powhatan. He courageously carried out his duties as interpreter, even during violent conflicts that put his loyalties to test.

This book, published in 2007 at the time of Jamestown's 400 year anniversary, tells an interesting story about a real person in American history who we know little about. Woven throughout the story are a number of economics lessons, including the importance of natural resources, human resources, jobs, scarcity, trade, and barter. With its rich historical and economics content, this sixty-page book makes an excellent addition to any collection of children's books.

Good book at 4th or 5th grade reading level to present a detailed account of history. I found it a bit too detailed for pleasure reading. Way too many names. A pronunciation guide would have been helpful for the Indian names.

Whoa, this is a great fictionalized account of a real person, based on notes, records, and memoirs left behind by other people -- Thomas Savage did not keep a diary or leave behind a record of his life.

Like everything Jean Fritz writes, this book is entertaining. This is a step away from the biographies that are her usual specialty, in that the historical record leaves a lot of gaps where Thomas Savage is concerned. But the character she presents in this story is believable and likable -- an Englishman adopted by Powhatan and serving as an interpreter for decades.

Having said all that... I'm a mom with a family of boys, and some kids can handle the sudden violent details presented in this book. But some kids can't.

Your child will read about the the torture and death of Jamestown colony's second president, John Ratcliffe, who was tied to a tree and had every appendage sawed off with sharpened seashells, then was further tortured by being flayed alive. There are other instances of Indian attacks and massacres on the colonists, filling in context for your children on why the settlers felt such widespread fear of the Indians. This book also presents the colonists' predations on the Indians.

Parents know what is best for their own kids.

If this book isn't quite right for you, try "James Towne: Struggle for Survival" by Marcia Sewall.

This book, "Who's Saying What in Jamestown, Thomas Savage," I would recommend for anyone. In this story a thirteen year old boy, Thomas Savage, comes to Jamestown from England on a ship named John and Francis. When they get to Jamestown, half the town is dead. A few days later, Thomas Savage is sent to the great Indian chief, Powhatan, to learn their language so he can become a translator. The chief wants to trade skins for swords with Captain Newport but Newport doesn't want to. The angry chief sends Thomas back to Jamestown. The Indians invade Jamestown many times and massacre hundreds of English settlers. Finally things settle down for a while. Pocahontas marries John Rolph. The Indians and English live peacefully side by side, but things soon change back to the old ways. Thomas won a running race with the new Indian chief, Laughing King. Thomas marries, has a son and a house. At the age of 42, Thomas dies from disease.
I think that the author, Jean Fritz, wrote this book wonderfully. There are not too much gruesome happenings in it. It's an easy-to-read chapter book for young readers and a good learning tool.