FINDING THE NEW WORLD

By Walter Taylor Field '83. Ginn and Cos., 1935. PP. viii, 429.

The subtitle of this volume for supplementary reading in history courses of the middle grades is "From Leif the Lucky to the Pilgrims of Plymouth." This suggests the era covered by the text. In his foreword the author suggests that the book "is not to be studied, but to be read for the joy of reading."

Two considerations justify the writer in this hope for his work. To youth, interest in history is for the most part an interest in individual heroes, in elementary biographical material. Mr. Field treats of heroes who had a part in the discovery and exploration of America. These are the men whose lives have furnished epic material to generations of American schoolboys. The treatment is, however, fresh and the results of modern scholarship are apparent.

A second consideration not to be overlooked is the simplicity of style and vocabulary. Recent tests have furnished word lists within the range of the child's progress. In the preparation of his text the author has aimed to keep within the range of these lists. The human element has not been overlooked, nor has the romance so marked in this period of history been neglected.

There are maps and illustrations, many being reproductions from well-known masterpieces.