Land Ho!: Fifty Glorious Years in the Age of Exploration ANNOTATION
Explains how the voyages of Columbus, Cabot, Ponce De Leon, and other European explorers to the American continents were the result of mistakes, accidents, and misses and discusses the explorers' cruel treatment of native peoples.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Did you know that Columbus was not actually looking for America when he found it? Aside from being one of themost famous mistakes of all time, Columbus's find led to one of the msot important discoveries in history—the discovery of the New World.
But Columbus wasn't the only explorer to end up in the New World. This fact-filled and comprehensive book maps out the adventures and misadventures of twelve well-known explorers from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, including Magellan, Vespucci, and Cabot. It shows the actual routes these men traveled and tells about their supplies and equipment, their personalities and interests—and much, much more!
FROM THE CRITICS
Children's Literature
After a brief, two-page introduction to the dozen explorers included, Parker fills each double-page description with some salient historical facts, maps with routes, colored drawings of the explorer and other people or objects relevant to the history, plus succinct captions and asides. Lots of information is offered to the reader in a very accessible style, with the light-hearted color sketches including only the most significant details. The endpapers provide further information, such as two views of Columbus's Niña, outside and inside with cargo;an inventory of the stores of Magellan's ship;and a display of navigational instruments. Some attention is paid to the culture of Native Americans, but little to the cruel effects of the arrival of the explorers. The author notes the difficulty of finding the "real" facts of history a she discusses her research for this book. 2001, HarperCollins, $15.95. Ages 6 to 10. Reviewer:Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz
School Library Journal
Gr 3-4-Employing the same type of illustrations and clear text as in Bugs! (Turtleback, 1988) and Money, Money, Money (HarperCollins, 1995), this book offers readers a general explanation of the early days of exploration through accounts of the voyages of 12 adventurers. A spread is devoted to each individual. One side presents some facts about the man and a brief discussion of his travels, and sometimes bits of trivia. (Columbus had red hair and Ponce de Le-n had a ferocious dog named Bercerillo.) Maps of the voyage routes with dates appear opposite these pages of information. The colorful spreads are full of small, labeled drawings and informative captions. The many simple but appealing illustrations include a cross section and side view of a typical ship, and some of the provisions and instruments needed on board. Readers will love finding out about shipworms and the Mayan Empire, and seeing how far and diverse exploration was during that time. For reports on specific explorers, this title is limited, but for young readers interested in fun and informative nonfiction, it's a winner.-Susan Lissim, Dwight School, New York City Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
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