Life Among The Puritans (The Way People Live) - Hardcover

"Information is presented clearly, with a nice selection of interesting detail to illustrate points and a generous sprinkling of footnotes. Numerous black-and-white illustrations include period engravings, documents, paintings, and photographs of artifacts. Photographs showing modern reenactments are clearly labeled. This resource is a solid addition to the existing body of literature."
-- School Library Journal (September 2001) (School Library Journal 20010901)

"The material is presented objectively and provides welcome insights."
-- School Library Journal (January 2002) (School Library Journal 20020101)

"The text is richly flavored with quotes as well. Attractive black-and-white photographs and reproductions illustrate the text. This volume provides a thrilling ride."
-- School Library Journal (August 2001) (School Library Journal 20010801)

"Black-and-white reproductions and maps provide points of reference. Sidebars offer tidbits of interesting information about events, people...This well-organized, slim volume provides many facts for reports."
-- School Library Journal (August 2001) (School Library Journal 20010801)

"The author's lively, well-researched narrative details the structure of the culture. This volume..will be a useful addition for units on ancient civilization."
-- School Library Journal (June 2001) (School Library Journal 20010601)

"An exemplary series entry, this volume does a thorough and realistic job of portraying the realities and horrors...Pertinent primary-source quotations and sidebars permeate the text and are noted in citations. Captioned pictures are scattered throughout. A useful resource for history reports and projects."
-- School Library Journal (May 2001) (School Library Journal 20010501)

Gr 4-8-Life in Plymouth Colony and the Massachusetts Bay Colony from their founding until the end of the 17th century is the focus here. Slavicek carefully points out the many ways the settlers' religious beliefs influenced their daily lives and the social and political practices of the colonies. An epilogue outlines the ways in which aspects of Puritan belief and behavior have shaped elements of contemporary American culture. Some of the same ground is covered in Christopher and James Lincoln Collier's Pilgrims and Puritans, 1620-1676 (Benchmark, 1997). Both books do a good job of describing how and why the religious beliefs of these people were expressed in virtually everything they did. In this context, it is unfortunate that after carefully identifying the Pilgrims as Separatists, and explaining how they differed from the Puritans of Massachusetts Bay, Slavicek then proceeds to use "Puritan" exclusively for the rest of the book. Information is presented clearly, with a nice selection of interesting detail to illustrate points and a generous sprinkling of footnotes. Numerous black-and-white illustrations include period engravings, documents, paintings, and photographs of artifacts. Photographs showing modern reenactments are clearly identified as such. However, the lack of color and the formatting of the text into two columns per page detract from the visual appeal of the work. Nonetheless, this resource is a solid addition to the existing body of literature on the early years of the Massachusetts colonies, and particularly noteworthy for its intelligent and careful presentation of some admittedly complex and often misunderstood or belittled religious beliefs.

Elaine Fort Weischedel, Franklin Public Library, MA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.