SAVAGE KINGDOM: THE TRUE STORY OF JAMESTOWN - last book of the year

If you have a fourth grader in Virginia, they're taking Virginia History as part of the school year ciriculum.  SInce I was born and raised outside of Virginia, my knowledge of the state's history was squat.  As a result, when helping our fourth grader study for his Virginia history tests, I found myself intrigued by the material.  Yeah, hundreds of years of history and a myriad of humanity was dumbed down to fit the school year cirriculum and time constraints, but what I learned working with our son was enough to inspire me to pick-up and finish my final book of the year.

Title:  Savage Kingdom: The True Story of Jamestown
Author: Benjamin Woolley
Company: Harper Collins
469 pages
Grade: *** stars



Comments:  Interesting read and left me with a far better understanding of Virginia's early history.  Difficult to slog through the segments that quoted "old English" language and when the book turned to then-contemporary English politics, it was all but incomprehinsible.  The book would have also been stronger had it focused more on day-to-day life in Jamestown and the other early settlements and less on the sponsorship politics.  Still, it was a fun read and I know way more about Captain John Smith, Virginia indians, and the roots of our country,  My gawd, those people were strong, though it was somehow heartwarming to see that they suffered from the same personal and collective shortcomings that we still have 400 plus years later.

I think my fourth grader's teacher would be proud of my work in this area.