Customer Reviews

The World of William Penn

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Genevieve Foster has the unique ability to take the reader on a journey into the world of various people, but in this work it is William Penn. You will not only learn about William Penn and his Quakerism, but also how he got given to him what is now Pennsylvania. You will also learn about the rulers of Japan, China, as well Louis XIV and Versailles, Peter the Great of Russia and how he came to build St. Petersburg. Also featured is Queen Elizabeth and King James of the authorized King James version fame. I do not care what age you are, this is a good way to get the historical overview that you need of the late 15 and early 16 hundreds.

I purchased this book because the World of Christopher Columbus was SO good, and this title wasn't available at our local library. As a homeschooling mom and big fan of William Penn and all that he stood for, I thought this would be a good addition to our home library. First of all, the size is smaller. Also the format is different, and there are typographical errors in the book. It does have good info, but definitely not what I was expecting from a Foster book.

In an easy-to-read style, author outlines the subject's history and, in what she terms "horizontal history", provides a most interesting outline of salient events during the subject's time period. This approach provides the reader, youthful or not, with an excellent persective of how historical events influenced the development of William Penn. Fast-moving, interesting text will help the youthful reader to develop an interest in historical subjects.

This format is different than the other titles I have read by this author, but still well done. I don't understand why history is not taught this way in every school, it makes people's lives so full and fascinating. Memorable, even! Our homeschool is now basing our entire history curriculum around Genevieve Foster's biographies.