Kate Messner

After the staggering revelations in 1491, written for adults, this book for younger readers about a much more specific topic is less "shocking" to me than it would have been a few years ago. Still, I learned a lot and had a lot of old "teaching" undone. It gives a good overview for children (and adults) of why we think some things happened and what they meant. As much as we want history and interpretations to be "pure," histories can be and are affected by the sources and science available, the motivations and culture of those doing the recording, and the motivations and culture of the individuals reacting to it. This is important for our young readers to understand as they seek to know the world. This book gives them a start.… (altro)