Tag: Biography

These are the days of your lives.

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Carry On, Mr. Bowditch By Jean Lee Latham

Set in post-Revolutionary War New England, Carry On, Mr. Bowditch is the  biography of Nathaniel Bowditch, author of The American Practical Navigator, nicknamed the “Sailor’s Bible.” While I never paid attention to the author’s name when I was a child, I’m sure I read several of Jean Lee Latham’s biographical works. I recognized her writing style at once.

Synopsis

When Habakkuk Bowditch’s ship founders on the shoals near Salem, Massachusetts, the family is left in poverty.  His second son, Nat,  is much smaller than his other other sons, and Mr. Bowditch doesn’t expect Nat will have the strength needed to join the family tradition of working on a ship.  So he decides to send Nat into indentured service. There will be one less mouth to feed in a family of seven children and Nat will be able to earn a living after nine years. Nat lives with another family for nine years to learn the trade of ship chandlery, the business of supplying equipment and commodities for ships.

Nat’s intuitive understanding of math concepts combined with his passion for helping ships sail as safely as possible drives him to a phenomenal self-education. He learns bookkeeping, Latin, French, Italian, navigational techniques, and advanced mathematics, all with the purpose of writing a book which will correct mathematical errors in established navigational books.

But don’t think this story is only about academic subjects. Nat’s adventures from the Cape of Good Hope to the island of Sumatra add all the action a reader could wish for.

Pros

  1. Nathaniel Bowditch’s life is well-documented, and Latham’s story holds true to all the facts.
  2. Children reading this will get a strong sense of the New World culture circa 1800.

Cons

  1. Because of the early nineteenth century culture, some adults may have a problem with the attitude of such things as “boys don’t blubber,” or that society approved of profits from whaling and sealing expeditions.

Discussion Questions

  1. Do you think Nat had a good attitude once he was indentured to the ship chandlery? Why or why not?
  2. Did Nat ever receive a college degree from Harvard?
  3. Why did wives of sailors need to be independent, able to run their entire households and provide for their families?
  4. Nat sailed on five different voyages. Which one of those voyages did you enjoy reading about the most?

Conclusion

As a Vintage Read, Carry On, Mr. Bowditch is both educational and entertaining.

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Killing Lincoln by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard

 

Killing Lincoln

Killing Lincoln is an excellent historical account of the time surrounding the end of the Civil War. While it’s suitable for middle grade up, it should be categorized as young adult because the book was not written for children.

Pros

Killing Lincoln goes into detail about the end of the Civil War. O’Reilly and Dugard go into great detail to put Lincoln’s assassination into historical context. The best part was the details about John Wilkes Booth, his co-conspirators, and what they did before and after the assassination. Bill O’Reilly narrates the audio version of Killing Lincoln, and I highly recommend it.

Cons

Not too many. Really sensitive children might be troubled by the details of Lincoln’s injury and the broken leg John Wilkes Booth sustained. While not overly graphic, both are rather detailed. Blogger’s note: when I went to Ford’s Theater and saw the suit Lincoln wore, I nearly passed out, so I might be a bit on the squeamish side. Because of the nature of assassinations, this might preclude families from listening to the audio version or allowing sensitive readers to read this book until they can handle this aspect. There is minimal,  if any unsuitable language. There may be a couple of minor oaths and/or racial slurs in the context of quotes and correspondence.

Rating

5 Stars. Overall, Killing Lincoln is well-written and engaging. Most of all, the istorical details are the highlight of this book are fascinating. My husband and I listened to the audiobook, which I highly recommend. Bill O’Reilly narrates and has an engaging voice.

Personal Opinion

We have listened to all of the O’Reilly-Dugard “Killing” books, and this is the second in my series on these books because I think each of them offers fantastic insight into the social and political climate at the time. However, not all will carry 5-star ratings even though the writing quality and level of detail are the same. Not all are family friendly due to varying degrees of objectionable content especially in the books covering more recent events.

Discussion points for parents & teachers:

  1. Discuss some of the difficult decisions President Lincoln had to make. Would you have made the same choice?
  2. John Wilkes Booth came from a prominent family and his brother was the equivalent of a famous movie star. What it might have been like to grow up like this?
  3. Put yourself in the place of a Confederate after their side lost
  4. Discuss the challenges faced by newly freed slaves.
  5. Consider some of the problems the Union faced reuniting the country.
  6. General Ulysses S. Grant
  7. General Robert E. Lee
  8. Jefferson Davis
  9. Secretary of State Seward and other political leaders of the time
  10. The Lincoln Family
  11. The conspirators

Parents will appreciate the historical account of this time in history. For teachers and librarians there are so many great topics that can springboard from this book.