Mayflower Book Report

American history is so much more interesting now than it was when I was growing up! I have just finished reading Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War by Nathaniel Philbrick. First of all, I was surprised to see a book on this summers New York Times Best Seller List about a subject so long ago. I would have thought the story about the Pilgrims had been told enough times no one would bother writing another book. Philbrick has written an enlightening account of the 17th century events that shaped our country. It was a story that is well written and enjoyable to read.
I was immediately hooked in the book. In the first paragraph, excluding the preface, Philbrick writes "There were 102 of them – 104 if you counted the two dogs: a spaniel
I viewed the Pilgrims as a community living and working together. I believed they became friends with the Native Americans and all learned to live peacefully with each other. As it turns out, "Living Happily Ever After" only happens in fairy tales. What I didn't know was the second generation must not have learned from their parents. There was a paragraph in the book that really illustrates the differences in generations. On page 203 Philbrick writes, "In 1623, Edward Winslow had earned Massasoit's undying love by doing everything in his power - even scraping the sachem's furred mouth - to save his life. Thirty-nine years later, Winslow's son (Josiah) had burst into Alexander's (Massasoit's oldest son) wigwam, brandishing a pistol. Within a week, the Pokanoket leader was
I have naively chosen not to actually digest the amount of killing and undeserved death that has shaped our history, both world history and American history. For years I have viewed history with a romanticist eye. I have come to realize that life is not pretty and some of these people, "heroes", that I have heard about or read about all of my life were not really the kind of people I had first thought. It is not just this book that has brought about my enlightenment. Among other things, I recently watched "The Mission", a 1986 movie starring Robert DeNiro; I didn't want to believe it was basically historically correct. It has broken my heart to realize the number of innocent people who have lost their lives throughout