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 enlarge | Author: Tony Horwitz
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Category: Book
List Price: $27.50
Buy New: $13.00
You Save: $14.50 (53%)
New (27) from $13.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  44 reviews
Sales Rank: 6636
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 464
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.6
Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.5
ISBN: 0805076034
Dewey Decimal Number: 970.01
EAN: 9780805076035
ASIN: 0805076034
Publication Date: April 29, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 A very readable introduction to early American history November 25, 2008
In his typical humorous and inquisitive style, Tony Horwitz sets to trace the roots of the "discovery" of America, and more importantly - to dispel some of the most prevalent myths around it.
It appears that most Americans believe that Columbus discovered America and that the US soil was first colonized by pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, that landed in Plymouth (a bit south of modern Boston) in 1620. The truth is far from that. Horwitz spends the 400 pages of this book telling about the real story behind America's colonization, starting with Viking discoverers at the turn of the first millennium, through first Spanish and French settlements and finally the founding of Jamestown, a colony in Virginia that preceded Plymouth by several years.
The book is composed of two intermixed themes. The one is a historical account, facts and research the author gleaned from the all material he could find on the subject (and in the end of the book you can see a quite complete bibliography). The other is a more personal story of Horwitz's own travels through the sites he describes in his historical accounts, trying to find traces of history and talking with local people. In his discussions, he mainly tries to dig up the "hard questions" - of why some historical facts are popularized and spread, and others, while objectively more important, are forgotten and sometimes even knowingly hidden.
There are a couple of nice quotes on his conclusions near the end of the book. This is from page 387:
[...] "So you're saying we should honor myth rather than fact?" I asked. "Precisely." [...] "Myth is more important than history. History is arbitrary, a collection of facts. Myth we choose, we create, we perpetuate". [...] "The story here may not be correct, but it transcends truth. It's like religion - beyond facts. Myth trumps fact, always does, always has, always will."
And from page 390:
Gould attributed this to "the psychic need for an indigenous creation myth." Humans, whether contemplating the genesis of their customs or of their species, yearn to locate "an explicit point of origin," rather than accept that most beginnings are gradual and complex. "Creation myths," he concluded, "identify heroes and sacred places, while evolutionary stories provide no palpable, particular thing as a symbol for reference, worship, or patriotism."
Interesting points to ponder on how "pop history" is formed and maintained, indeed.
I wouldn't call it a great book, and it's not even one of Horwitz's best books, but "A voyage long and strange" is well written and fun to read. If you're interested in the history of America's colonization, you can do much worse than start with this readable introduction, and dig into its sources for more eclectic research.
 Horwitz writes another winner. November 18, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was a big fan of Tony Horwitz's other works and this new offering did not fail to disappoint. He is able to weave history and humor into a volume that is hard to put down. It should be on every high school history students' reading list (or college for that matter). As our nation continues to struggle with its identity in the modern era, this book gives a foundation for where and how it all began. Anyone even remotely interested in travel and history will be entertained by this well researched tome.
Myth trumps facts October 17, 2008
Half history, half travelogue. The history covered in this book is pretty much ignored by our educational system which focuses on the pilgrims of 1620 while the much earlier explorations and settlements are generally ignored. This book helps fill those holes.
During the author's travels as he researches these histories, he meets a number of fascinating characters who add color and interest to the narrative.
The conclusion of the author is that myth always trumps facts. Our creation story is based on the myths surrounding the pilgrims and ignores the facts of earlier explorations.
A voyage long & strange October 6, 2008
Having just read " Cities of Gold " which covered in great details the spanish exploration in the Southwest U.S., I enjoyed reading more about East Coast Voyages of discovery. The author uses an easy and often humorous way of describing the events. In short it is an easy to read and informative bookA Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World
journey long and strange September 18, 2008
great research and well written. Our children should be doing this history reviews, if not through this book then through other text books. It is time to change our view of North American History.
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