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Rating: 
Summary: Excellent study
Review: An excellent and thorough study of early Illinois. Dr. Davis uses a broad range of sources to provide a needed account of the state's frontier period.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent study
Review: An excellent and thorough study of early Illinois. Dr. Davis uses a broad range of sources to provide a needed account of the state's frontier period.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointingly Dry
Review: Lytton Strachey wrote that the most illuminating histories tend to "shoot a revealing searchlight into obscure recesses. . ." (Eminient Victorians). The history of the Illinois frontier ought to be one of the truly fascinating recesses of American history -- it is, after all, the scene of the confluence of multiple cultures and influence: the prehistoric Sac and Fox cultures arising from the rubble of Cahokia, the greatest North American pre-Columbian culture; the French and British Influence; the American settlement and finally the Mormon Sojourn. This ought to be a rich ground for historical writing. The end result is highly disappointing. It informs but does not inspire. The writing is tedious and bogged down and seems to have no focus or theme. This is a standard academic text, calculated to put its reader to sleep. However, the Bibliography is a helpful springboard to other research on the subject.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointingly Dry
Review: Lytton Strachey wrote that the most illuminating histories tend to "shoot a revealing searchlight into obscure recesses. . ." (Eminient Victorians). The history of the Illinois frontier ought to be one of the truly fascinating recesses of American history -- it is, after all, the scene of the confluence of multiple cultures and influence: the prehistoric Sac and Fox cultures arising from the rubble of Cahokia, the greatest North American pre-Columbian culture; the French and British Influence; the American settlement and finally the Mormon Sojourn. This ought to be a rich ground for historical writing. The end result is highly disappointing. It informs but does not inspire. The writing is tedious and bogged down and seems to have no focus or theme. This is a standard academic text, calculated to put its reader to sleep. However, the Bibliography is a helpful springboard to other research on the subject.
Rating:
Summary: Touching the Minds of Pioneers
Review: Read this book when it was first released and have not been able to keep it out of my mind ever since, so I just finished reading it again. As a student of history, my greatest interest is in how the people lived and felt who shaped the events we call history. James F. Davis helped me to visualize how people lived and how they felt about the events they affected and that effected them. Especially impressive is his understanding of the mindsets of Yankees and Southerners and how this evolved as the State matured and grew. I give "Frontier Illinois" my highest unqualified recommendation.
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