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Packed with first-hand accounts, this book is an eyewitness guide to Columbus's voyages of explorations. Photography, story-telling, pull-out details and a gatefold panorama bring his journeys to life. ... Read more

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A riveting account of African-American explorer Matthew Henson s 1909 journey to the North Pole with Admiral Peary Many know the story of Robert Peary s great 1909 expedition to reach the North Pole. Yet few people know that Peary was joined on this grueling, history-making journey by fellow explorer Matthew Henson.

Henson was born just after the Civil War, a time when slavery had been abolished, but few opportunities were available for black people. Even as a child, he exhibited a yearning for adventure, and at the age of only thirteen, he embarked on a five-year voyage sailing the seven seas and learning navigation, history, and mathematics.
Henson s greatest adventure began when he accepted an invitation by Robert Peary to join his expedition to the North Pole. The team endured storms, shifting ice, wind, injuries, accidents, and unimaginable cold. Finally on April 1, Peary, Henson, and four Inuit men began the final 133-mile push to the Pole.

Readers will share in the excitement and drama of this remarkable, history-making adventure as award-winning author Deborah Hopkinson pays tribute to a great but under recognized figure from America s past. Illustrator Stephen Alcorn s large-format, stylized ink-and-watercolor illustrations capture all the action. Excerpts from Henson s expedition diaries, a timeline, and an epilogue place the story in its historical context. ... Read more

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Award-winning artist Deborah Hopkinson brings to life this stirring, little-known saga of a born explorer
Keep On! The Story of Matthew Henson, Co-Discoverer of the North Pole is a picturebook biography of intrepid African-American explorer Matthew Henson, who is often overlooked even though he discovered the North Pole along with the more famous Admiral Robert Peary. Matthew Henson was the most valuable member of Peary's team; he repaired equipment, hunted, traded with and learned from the Inuit. After an eighteen year odyssey he and Peary were the first to stand at the top of the world; yet due to the racial climate of the era, only Peary was widely remembered and credited for the achievement. Award-winning artist Deborah Hopkinson brings to life this stirring, little-known saga of a born explorer.
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The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Florida; Biography ... Read more

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Magellan Still Lives!
The best biographical book on this explorer yet! You can actually feel what Ferdinand Magellan felt during his voyage around the world. During his life between 1480-1521, he goes through many tasks, his age doesn't matterto him when he decides to circumnavigate the world. Who named the PacificOcean? He did! Pacific means calm. Did you know that? I bet you did not!You can find out more about his extroardinary life and achievements in thisbook. This book is great for bibliography writing, historical figurespeeches, or just for plain fun and your acknowledgement. ... Read more

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Ages 8 to 14 years.Young readers will enjoy this sensitively written new book about Columbus; famous journey and the results of his interaction with the indigenous people he encountered.Features: full-colour maps of the journey; native American culture and customs before and after Columbus' arrival; the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria; the evolution of the world map; the duties and superstitions of the crew, as well as how they dealt with hardships; how the "New World" affected Spain's economy; an authentic recipe. ... Read more

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Each title in this series tells the story of a man or woman whose dedication to their chosen cause led to changes that affect all our lives today. Each includes a vivid description of the world in which the famous person lived. This book tells how the television, now a feature of almost every household in the developed world, began life in the front room of its inventor. John Logie Baird had a passion for inventing things. He was also interested in photography, and the narrative describes how it was this fascination with pictures coupled with his interest in the newly invented radio that fuelled his dream of inventing a machine that could broadcast pictures. Accurate illustrations help the reader understand how Baird's invention worked, and the text brings to life the excitement of the first real pictures transmitted in Hastings in 1926. ... Read more

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A biography of the Spanish explorer and governor of Cuba, who attempted to find the Fountain of Youth in the New World. ... Read more

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A biography of the team who explored the Louisiana Purchase territory while seeking the elusive Northwest Passage to the Pacific Ocean. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Worth Reading, even for adults
I brought this book home from the library for my son (9).After he read it, I picked it up and started reading a few of the chapters.It is well written, which I can't always say about books for children.It's also a great story about American exploration. ... Read more

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Presents a biography of the legendary frontiersman who explored Kentucky and the route to the West leading to American expansion of the United States. ... Read more

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Daniel Boone
One of many books about Boone.This one lacks the substance of many others.The best is that by Lyman Draper.Second is that by Nathan Boone.The book by John Bakeless is a very good earlier study, and covers all the ground well.I suggest this book for younger people, but scholars will want to look elsewhere.

Watch out for errors!
My initial perusal of this book picked up the following rather blatant mistakes:
Back Cover: "Wearing a cap made from raccoon skin . . ." (In real life, Daniel Boone never wore a coonskin cap.)
Page 13: The homestead is comprised of 250 acres, not 25.
Page 17: Fort Necessity is NOT located "at the site where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers merge to form the Ohio." That's where Fort Duquesne, later Fort Pitt, stood. Fort Necessity is 50 miles to the southeast.
Page 19: The caption identifies Boone's rifle as "Lick-Ticker." Try "Tick Licker."
Page 47: Two, not three, of Boone's children were killed.

Watch out for errors!
My initial perusal of this book picked up the following rather blatant mistakes:
Back Cover: "Wearing a cap made from raccoon skin . . ." (In real life, Daniel Boone never wore a coonskin cap.)
Page 13: The homestead is comprised of 250 acres, not 25.
Page 17: Fort Necessity is NOT located "at the site where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers merge to form the Ohio." That's where Fort Duquesne, later Fort Pitt, stood. Fort Necessity is 50 miles to the southeast.
Page 19: The caption identifies Boone's rifle as "Lick-Ticker." Try "Tick Licker."
Page 47: Two, not three, of Boone's children were killed. ... Read more

Product Description
Designed especially for beginning readers, First-Start Biographies trace the childhood years of famous men and women who overcame obstacles and achieved greatness. Illustrated in full color. ... Read more

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Great for Younger Students
This book gives a nice, organized view of Columbus' achievements.I especially liked how the book made the point that Columbus did not land in what is now the United States, but rather on the island of San Salvador.There are lots of illustrations, and the vocabulary is simple enough that younger students would be able to comprehend the information. ... Read more

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Ages 8 to 14 years.When England's Queen Elizabeth I asked Sir Walter Raleigh to search for new lands to claim and colonise, her friend and loyal subject pledged to found a colony in tribute to his Queen. This exciting recreation of the founding, loss, and reclamation of the Virginia colony in the late 1500s also describes Raleigh's unsuccessful search for the fabled wealthy kingdom of El Dorado, the deterioration of his relationship with the Queen , and his eventual execution. Other topics include: England's relationships with Spain and other European powers; Raleigh's travel routes; his later explorations; how Natives in America received Raleigh and how the Europeans treated the Natives; Sir Walter Raleigh's imprisonment in the Tower of London before execution. ... Read more

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Cortes the explorer and conqueror
The author, Gina De Angelis, does a pretty good job detailing the conquest of Mexico by Cortes.There is a chronolgy and glossary at the end of the book that will benefit many young students of history. Teachers will find the glossary especially helpful for teaching across the curriculum. The are a few colorful pictures that bring the story to life but the book could have used a few more. The author does a good job of incorporating a sense of the times and explaining relationships in the old and new world. This biography of Cortes explains his part in history, bringing him to life from a young man until his death and all his adventures along the way. As an introduction to Cortes, especially for a young reader, this book is pretty good. If a student has to do a report this is a good source coupled with suggested furhter reading like Hernan Cortes: The Life of a Spanish Conquistador (Graphic Nonfiction) or The Sad Night: The Story of an Aztec Victory and a Spanish Loss. Although the book is pretty accurate in it's assessment of the conquest, with the roles played by the indigenous tribes in helping the Spaniards etc., one minor thing was glossed over. The role of La Malinche or as she is called in the book, by her Spanish name(she was not)Donna Marina, is not emphasized enough nor are the repercussions of her assistance. There is no mention of the fact that Mexicans consider her a traitor. To the books credit it does say that without La Maliches help the mission of Cortes might have been unsuccessful. This book is recommended for young readers in the middle school range and is recommended for school and community libraries.

A Century of Explorers
If you like this book of inquires then read Morgan Freeman, Black American Of Achievement by Gina Deangelis. It explains about Morgan Freeman and his times.This book shows his importance and how he evolve in life.What hestands for and so forth. This is also a very good Black History book. There is also a move out from this book and i belive the book would be goodin a mini series about his life. ... Read more

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Ages 8 to 14 years.In the 1700s, the voyages of British Captain James Cook shed light on what life was really like in the uncharted Pacific. Hired to seek an undiscovered continent known by astronomers and geographers as Terra Australis Incognita, or unknown southern land, Cook proved that it didn't exist, dramatically changing Europeans' understanding of their world. Young readers will also be fascinated by Cook's encounters of the cultures of the native peoples of Tahiti and Hawaii. A recipe from the period is also included. Topics include: Cook's youth as an apprentice and early training in the British Royal Navy; a map of Cook's routes; the discovery of Tahiti, Hawaii, Australia, and New Zealand; customs of the native peoples, including the Kaua'i, Maori, and Tahitians; Cook's ships, the Adventure and the Resolution; the responsibilities of the crew and how they coped with illnesses such as scurvy; a fun-to-make recipe from the period; the long-awaited transit of Venus; the findings of the Royal Geographic Society. ... Read more

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Ages 8 to 14 years.Famous for his search for the legendary Fountain of Youth, Spanish conquistador Ponce de Leon is credited with the discovery of Florida in 1513 as well as making Puerto Rico and the Gulf Stream known to the Spanish world. This sensitively written new book describes his encounters with the Calusa, the native inhabitants of Florida, and the Taino, natives of Puerto Rico. Young readers will enjoy reading about life at sea and the hardships faced by his crew. A recipe from the period is also included. Topics include: Ponce de Leon's life, from a page, to a squire, to Governor of a plantation; his military successes; his motivation for seeking to settle the "New World"; his discoveries of Florida and of The Tortugas; his plantation Cassava, and its role in future trade routes; the relationships he had with Native Americans: aid from the Taino Indians in farming, and the repulsion by the Calusa Natives from the Florida coast; life at sea for Ponce de Leon and his crew; a recipe for Cassava bread. ... Read more

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Ages 8 to 14 years.Although prejudiced attitudes in the early 1900s prevented African American explorer Mathew Henson from receiving his equal credit, he and Robert Peary were true partners in the dangerous race to discover the North Pole. This adventurous book describes how they survived exploration in the harsh climate of the Arctic by adopting the ways of the Inuit, and how, despite controversy, they became famous role models upon returning to the United States. Readers will relive the experience of a partnership that left a legacy of scientific and geographic discovery. Other topics include: their life experiences; the events that lead to Henson's acceptance of Peary's proposal; the racism Henson encountered as an African American explorer; doubts about the expedition; their competitors in the race to the top of the world. ... Read more

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A biography of the Italian explorer who, in the fifteenth century, became the first European to discover the West Indies islands, located below the southernmost tip of the United States, in three historic voyages sponsored by Spain's monarchy. ... Read more

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Discusses the explorations of fourteen explorers, from Pytheas's voyage to Britain in 320 B.C. to Fuchs's crossing of the Antarctic in 1957. ... Read more