The only genuine problem with this excellent book is that it does not compare favorably with some of the other books in this series. For instance, if one turns to this after reading Schlereth's amazing VICTORIAN AMERICA, one is scaled down the book seems in comparison. This is not the fault of author David Hawke. The problem is the paucity of details in everyday life in 17th century America compared to the late 19th. Unfortunately for Hawke, the life of Americans in the 17th century was rudimentary and, of necessity, simple. What makes VICTORIAN AMERICA such a delight is the almost overwhelmingly amount of delicious detail.

Nonetheless, life in 17th century colonial America is apt to be less familiar to most readers than that of late 19th century America, and this book performs an enormous service in providing a concise, well-written overview of what that life was like. Hawke is especially good at exploding various myths that have evolved over the years concerning colonial life. Unlike the later volumes in the series, Hawke deals, by dint of necessity, of the larger historical situation.

Some of the topics that Hawke takes up include the structure of towns and villages, the nature of farms and the crops grown, houses and the types of objects found within them, the health of the settlers and treatment of illness, social stratification, indentured servitude and slavery, relations with Native Americans, and various superstitions. If the book was somewhat less exhilarating than some of the later books in the series, it nonetheless is quite informative. I highly recommend it to anyone wishing to learn more about the nuts and bolts of colonial life.

This is a great book for the ordinary reader who would enjoy a chance to learn a bit more about the history of our country. With 176 pages of written text, it can't provide an extremely in- depth description of colonial life, but it does give an excellent overview of the 17th century in America with a surprising amount of detail. The writing style is engaging and not at all difficult, so the book is easy to finish off in a few days. I would recommend it!

This book is a must for anyone who wants to achieve a greater understanding of day-to-day life in 17th century America with a few hours of enjoyable reading. Hawke largely avoids the in-depth treatment of weightier political, social, and religious issues that bog down most such histories, and instead focuses on giving the reader a palpable impression of what it was like simply to be alive. It's not all farm implements and spinning wheels, either. The author skillfully uses anecdotes to covey the impact of bigger issues like industry and economics, transportation, warfare, morals and manners, etc. Excellent!

I read this book, from our school library, to a class of third-graders. We are located near Plymouth and I read this as a prelude to our class trip to Plimoth Plantation.

It was interesting and gave some good insights into life in Plymouth in 1626. However, there were a couple of glaring errors. The boy in the story spoke of a visit from Squanto. This would have been impossible since Squanto died in 1622. Also, the author refers to the Pilgrims as Puritans in two or three different places in the story. The Pilgrims who came here for religious reasons refered to themselves as "Saints." The Puritans came to Massachusetts in 1630. The author should also explain, in the story, why March 25th was considered to be "New Year's Day." On March 25th, the date in the journal changed from 1626 to 1627.

The artwork was very interesting, presented in the form of woodcuts. This was tied into the story as the boy telling the story was making these woodcuts.

It's an interesting story and very informative. I would recommend this book to anyoe who would like to see what life was like in "Olde Plimoth."