Thursday, June 20, 2019

Review: Daniel Boone by James Daugherty

Synopsis: A biography, with pictures, of the life of Daniel Boone

Review: This is a mixed review:
Pros: As far as a Biography suitable to Young Readers, this is excellent. The story is told with simple but solid prose, nice pacing, with lots of facts about the culture and times, including details about Boone that aren’t often included in stories about him. The art is dynamic, engaging, and vivid. It's a fine addition to the story.
Cons: Written in the 1940, this makes the First Nations people (Indians in the book) out as villainous, blood-thirsty savages, instead of people defending their land about a conquering nation bent on destroying them at any cost. Boone is not a hero. He stole land from other people, then killed those people when they resisted. A product of its time, it makes sense. But it is not a true account of the beginning of the USA and should be read, if at all, with that in mind.  “Braving the wilds of an uncharted land” is a false way of saying “Help eradicate an entire people-group so he could have their land”. Boone, to be fair, didn’t view it that way, and like this book, was a product of his time, in which First Nations were considered little more than vermin to be exterminated. Be warned – this is not the book to use when teaching children about the opening of the west to the Europeans.

Bookmarks: 3 of 5

Awards: Newbery Medal, 1941

ISBN: 9781887840125
Year Published: 1939
Date Finished: 4-11-19
Pages: 95

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