George vs. George : The Revolutionary War as Seen by Both Sides

Rating:
Summary: Interesting text, Wonderful illustrations
Review: We read this book as part of my son's studies of the American Revolution. In all honesty, until he began these studies, I'd never given much thought to George Washington - now I find myself fascinated by this man's character. While I've graduated to adult literature about our first President, I continue to read my son's books, as well. As this title suggests, the author attempts to present facts (drawn from historical documents) about the Revolutionary War, George Washington and King George III and to demonstrate the two men's reasoning behind the decisions they made and draw parallels between them. I got the feeling that she really wants us to "like" George III, because, according to her research, a majority of Britains did, and he wasn't really a "tyrant". She indicates that while our Declaration of Independence puts all the blame on George III, it was really Great Britain's Parliament that was to blame. George III never meant to harm anyone. Hmmmm. I'll reserve comment on that.

If you're looking for a lot of info about George Washington, this really isn't the book. If you want a children's book where the author attempts to give a look at both sides of the war, she does that here. Her artwork is wonderful in its simplicity, yet still loaded with detail.

One thing missing from this book, since it's as much about differences as it is parallels...My son wondered if George III ever actually fought for his country like George Washington did.

And then, Schanzer has Washington smiling broadly during the charge of the Battle of Princeton, as he says "It's a fine fox chase, my boys." I doubt he smiled at all, simply because he was continuously troubled by painful tooth problems, wore dismally uncomfortable dentures and was very self conscious of the whole matter. And from everything else I've read so far, a smile in the midst of battle, no matter how victorious he might have felt after Trenton, doesn't seem to fit with who he was.

The reading age range is listed as 9-12. My son is a struggling reader at age 11. He was reluctant to read it, so this was one I read to him. He asked a lot of questions and spent much time examining the illustrations - it took us quite a while to get through it, but he says he likes the book.