"The Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War" by Nathaniel Philbrick

Sorry I've been slow to post February's book, I've been a little sidetracked I guess.

I love history and am always drawn to non-fiction more than fiction. With that in mind, I'm hoping this isn't a terrible pick for everyone else. I thought it looked interesting...






From The Washington Post: Few periods in American history are as clouded in mythology and romantic fantasy as the Pilgrim settlement of New England. The Mayflower, Plymouth Rock, the first Thanksgiving, Miles Standish, John Alden and Priscilla ("Speak for yourself, John") Mullins -- this is the stuff of legend, and we have thrilled to it for generations. Among many other things, it is what Nathaniel Philbrick calls "a restorative myth of national origins," one that encourages us in the conviction that we are a nation uniquely blessed by God and that we have reached a level of righteousness unattained by any other country.
It is a comforting mythology, but it has little basis in fact. The voyage of the Mayflower was a painful and fatal (one crew member died) transatlantic passage by people who knew nothing about the sea and had "almost no relevant experience when it came to carving a settlement out of the American wilderness." Wherever they first set foot on the American continent, it wasn't Plymouth, and it certainly wasn't Plymouth Rock. The first Thanksgiving (in 1621) was indeed attended by Indians as well as Pilgrims, but they didn't sit at the tidy table depicted in Victorian popular art; they "stood, squatted, or sat on the ground as they clustered around outdoor fires, where the deer and birds turned on wooden spits and where pottages -- stews into which varieties of meats and vegetables were thrown -- simmered invitingly." As for Priscilla Mullins, John Alden and Miles Standish, that tale is nothing more than a product of the imagination of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
These cherished myths, in other words, bear approximately as much resemblance to reality as does, say, the story of George Washington and the cherry tree. In Mayflower, his study of the Pilgrim settlement, Philbrick dispatches them in a few paragraphs. It takes considerably longer, and requires vastly more detail, for him to get closer to the truth about relations between the Pilgrims and the Indians. Popular mythology tends to focus on Massasoit, the chief of the Pokanokets who allied his tribe with the English settlers, and Squanto, the English-speaking Indian who formed a close, mutually rewarding friendship with William Bradford, governor of Plymouth Plantation for three decades. Some of what that mythology tells us is indeed true, but as Philbrick is at pains to demonstrate, the full truth is vastly more complicated.




Buy the book on Amazon starting at $0.76 used.

Reading in '09

Hey everybody!

It's a new year for reading and I can't wait! I'm going to try to beat my page total for last year although we'll see...Ron groans now every time I start a new book. I still have a few books to catch up on from last year and I can't wait to see what you all choose for this year. I was wondering if we could maybe set a deadline for ourselves for posting the book for the coming month - like maybe on a certain day of the month - so we all have time to get it?! (I hope you don't mind Tricia, I took the liberty of assigning the first few months of the year.) Also, we need to figure out how we want to discuss the books we read. I really want to know what you all thought. Post your ideas!

P.S. I'm almost done with Marley & Me and wanted to apologize for the language! I guess that's the risk you take choosing a book you've never read before. Too bad it's so darn funny!

January: Marley and Me by John Grogan

I've been a slacker the last couple of months with this book club so I'm going to do better this year. The Left Behind series has been holding me hostage! I'm also going to take the initiative and pick a book for January - hope you don't mind! If any of you have already read this leave a comment. I've got several other choices!

October: The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

Thanks for filling in in the month of September Emily! I really appreciate it since I've been such a total slacker! So I was thinking about this little series of books the other day and about how they were some of my favorite growing up. I might regret this choice later, but I remember loving The Chronicles of Prydain and hope you all enjoy the first book in the series for the month of October.

From Amazon.com:
"The tale of Taran, assistant pig keeper, has been entertaining young readers for generations. Set in the mythical land of Prydain (which bears a more than passing resemblance to Wales), Lloyd Alexander's book draws together the elements of the hero's journey from unformed boy to courageous young man. Taran grumbles with frustration at home in the hamlet Caer Dallben; he yearns to go into battle like his hero, Prince Gwydion. Before the story is over, he has met his hero and fought the evil leader who threatens the peace of Prydain: the Horned King.

What brings the tale of Taran to life is Alexander's skillful use of humor, and the way he personalizes the mythology he has so clearly studied. Taran isn't a stick figure; in fact, the author makes a point of mocking him just at the moments when he's acting the most highhanded and heroic. When he and the young girl Eilonwy flee the castle of the wicked queen Achren, Taran emotes, "'Spiral Castle has brought me only grief; I have no wish to see it again.' 'What has it brought the rest of us?' Eilonway asked. 'You make it sound as though we were just sitting around having a splendid time while you moan and take on.'" By the end, Alexander has spun a rousing hero's tale and created a compelling coming-of-age story. Readers will sigh with relief when they realize The Book of Three is only the first of the chronicles of Prydain. --Claire Dederer --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title."

$5.99 on Amazon.com

September: "The Covenant" by Beverly Lewis

From Publishers Weekly: Inspirational novelist Lewis begins Abram's Daughters, a Lancaster County series about four Amish sisters, in the tradition of her previous novels. It should please her fans, while not offering much in the way of fresh material. It's 1946 in Gobbler's Knob, Pa., Sadie Ebersol and her sister, Leah, are exploring the joys of "rumschpringe" the period of relaxed rules and running around that Amish teens enjoy prior to their baptism into the church. Tomboy Leah's first love is Jonas Mast, but her father Abram has determined she'll marry Gideon Peachey, whose father's farm adjoins the Ebersols'. Her beautiful sister Sadie's defiance crosses the boundaries when she becomes involved with Englischer Derek Schwartz. Heartache is inevitable. The dialect (perty, redd, Dat, ach, wonderful-gut, jah) is as dense as sugar cream pie, as are the italicized terms.

This book is the first in a series of 6 or so written by Beverly Lewis, but was recommended to me by my friend who just got thru reading it. Even though it is a series, I thought it would be good since it focuses on a subject I know very little about (the Amish). I'm intrigued...I hope it's good!

You can pick up a used copy at Amazon starting at $.o1. Happy Reading!

What is September's Book?

I am in need of some reading material! Are we going to have a book for September? I have my book for October picked out if Tricia is needing a break to get ready for the baby! Let me know and I'll post my book if need be! (For now I am holding off reading it until Oct...but it has been tempting me on my nightstand!:)

Let's Chat: The Prizewinner of Defiance, Ohio (July)

Here's what I thought.

Here's what Emily thought.

What did the rest of you think?