The portrayal of Columbus’s famous voyage in children’s history books has often made me uncomfortable, knowing that some of the results of that voyage, whether intended or not, were tragic to many people. And the history of exploration and colonization since Columbus often focuses on the European side of things, while ignoring the truly global changes that took place. So I was excited to see that AmblesideOnline had added 1493 for Young People by Charles C. Mann and Rebecca Stefoff as an option in Year 8.
The main themes of 1493 could probably be summarized as people, plagues, plants, and pests. Columbus’s voyage had far more impact than just moving people across the Atlantic, and that impact would soon be felt on every continent. I learned about how malaria spread, the history of rubber, and self-governing communities of escaped slaves, among other fascinating if sometimes disturbing topics (nothing too graphic here, however). It left me feeling like there is even more to this story I have yet to learn – perhaps someday I will read the full version of 1493. 🙂 I also appreciate that Mann does not give pat answers to the problems of globalization, instead he raises thoughtful questions to ponder.
1493 is an excellent read for middle school and up – both my 8th grader and 11th grader are reading it this year (our school year isn’t quite finished yet. 😉 ) I do recommend reading it over two terms (24 weeks) instead of one as AO has scheduled. Despite the wide margins and many photos and illustrations, there is a lot going on in this book, and some of the chapters are quite long. Here is how I divided it up:
- Week 1: Introduction
- Week 2: Chapter 1 to page 27
- Week 3: Chapter 1 to end
- Week 4: Chapter 2
- Week 5: Chapter 3 to page 69
- Week 6: Chapter 3 to end
- Week 7: Chapter 4 to page 102
- Week 8: Chapter 4 to top of page 118
- Week 9: Chapter 4 to end
- Week 10: Chapter 5 to page 147
- Week 11: Chapter 5 to page 161
- Week 12: Chapter 5 to end
- Week 13: Chapter 6 to page 189
- Week 14: Chapter 6 to end
- Week 15: Chapter 7 to page 220
- Week 16: Chapter 7 to top of page 240
- Week 17: Chapter 7 to end
- Week 18: Chapter 8 to middle of page 272
- Week 19: Chapter 8 to end
- Week 20: Chapter 9 to page 307
- Week 21: Chapter 9 to end
- Week 22: Chapter 10 to page 347
- Week 23: Chapter 10 to end
- Week 24: Afterword and Time Line (I found it helpful to read through this and refresh my memory of all the things I’d read about!)
