Places in Time: A New Atlas of American History

Rating:
Summary: A unique atlas about key places in American History
Review: "Places in Time: A New Atlas of American History" takes young readers to twenty sites that have shaped America's history, such as New Plymouth when the Pilgrims first settled in the New World, Fort Laramie when the wagon trains rolled through, and Ellis Island when the immigrants arrived. Elspeth Leacock and Susan Buckley have combined an atlas and a storybook, with illustrations by Randy Jones, that shows the layouts of these places, often with cut-aways of the interiors of key buildings, such as a New York City tenement.

I think "Journeys in Time," the companion New Atlas of American History co-authored by Leacock and Buckley, is the slightly superior work, but that is mainly because some of these places have a rather limited scope. For example, geography came into play during the Battle of Gettysburg as much as in any battle in American History, but that is not exactly covered here. I also think that when the book looks at just one building, e.g. "Chicago: Christmas at the Mansion (1893)", it is not playing to its strength. When we see the layout of an entire whaling village or the frontier fort at Boonesborough, that is when this book is at its best.

These are a nice set of books, which will give young students a new perspective on American history. The approach is also something that can be emulated in the classroom, taking these same principals and applying them to other aspects of history the kids are studying. Be sure to check out both volumes.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting Points in History
Review: AWESOME, COOL, EXCITING

This book was a great experience for me. It taught me how life changes . It had information about wars, if you like wars. It's amazing how life changes like when a water-powered turbine powered a belt which produced electricity used to make quilts and cloth.

There is a little square on the page that tells you the year and place in the U.S. that the event took place. It has numbers to tell you what is what in the illustrations.

I loved the part about Ellis Island! Back then there were big mansions. Now a days there are not as many mansions. Read this book to learn about events in history you have never thought about before.

Rating:
Summary: Personalized History
Review: It does not simply show war battle sites. Historic places like a New England factory town, 1770's Philadelphia, and a slave plantation are also shown. Do not think of this as a map book. Cutaway drawings/paintings with labels show the reader a typical plantation, factory town, a 1950's planned suburb and battle scenes. It is a way of making history accessible and put a personal face on it. It is different in a very good way.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting Points in History
Review: What a wonderful book! You can help your middle schooler envision locales of historic interest with these twenty two-page spreads. Pictures use up most of the space and depict people, including children, in typical doings; some cross-sections are employed. The text of several paragraphs describes the place physically, culturally and historically, and sometimes stories are personalized through the experience of a child. Numbered entries point out events or items of interest. Very nicely done and a terrific aid for visual learners.

Presented in chronological order, the sites are: Cahokia, 1200 AD; a Pacific Northwest whaling village, 1490; a pueblo and mission, 1627; New Plymouth, 1627; Charlestown, 1739; a black settlement/fort, 1759; Boonesborough, Kentucky, 1776; battle of Saratoga, 1777; Philadelphia, 1787; a Taos hacienda, 1823; Fort Laramie, 1849; a New England mill town, 1850; a plantation, 1855; Gettysburg, 1863; Abilene, 1871; a wheat farm, 1888; a Chicago mansion, 1893; Ellis Island, 1901; a New York tenement, 1916; a post-WWII housing project, 1953. An index is included.

Very nicely done. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: fun, gorgeous, fascinating
Review: What a wonderful book! You can help your middle schooler envision locales of historic interest with these twenty two-page spreads. Pictures use up most of the space and depict people, including children, in typical doings; some cross-sections are employed. The text of several paragraphs describes the place physically, culturally and historically, and sometimes stories are personalized through the experience of a child. Numbered entries point out events or items of interest. Very nicely done and a terrific aid for visual learners.

Presented in chronological order, the sites are: Cahokia, 1200 AD; a Pacific Northwest whaling village, 1490; a pueblo and mission, 1627; New Plymouth, 1627; Charlestown, 1739; a black settlement/fort, 1759; Boonesborough, Kentucky, 1776; battle of Saratoga, 1777; Philadelphia, 1787; a Taos hacienda, 1823; Fort Laramie, 1849; a New England mill town, 1850; a plantation, 1855; Gettysburg, 1863; Abilene, 1871; a wheat farm, 1888; a Chicago mansion, 1893; Ellis Island, 1901; a New York tenement, 1916; a post-WWII housing project, 1953. An index is included.

Very nicely done. Highly recommended.