Columbus's Chart, Vol. 3

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

Born in Genoa, Columbus became a sailor and planned an expedition to get to the eastern lands—a quick route to Asia or the Indies. Life was not easy and at times he was very poor while at others life was not so bad. At the age of 25 he was an experienced seaman—married into a good family with a wife who made her father's charts and others documents available to him. Unfortunately, she died shortly after the birth of their son Diego. Columbus needed financial backing for his proposed expeditions. He had no success in Lisbon with King John so he went to Spain to present his proposal to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. In addition to money, Columbus made many other demands for his expedition and finally they were met. It was difficult getting a crew because of the fear of the unknown and the hard life aboard a ship, where there was little food, cramped quarters and plenty of work. He made several voyages, and as we know they were mainly to the Caribbean. He returned to Europe in disgrace, but then he traveled back to the Caribbean brought some riches and did not die in poverty. The final page debunks many of the myths and legends and presents the facts known about Columbus. This series, "Stories of Great People," is set up with a sister and brother team (Digby and Hannah) who visit the Knicknack Market and its vendors. One of them, Mr. Rummage, has a "disorderly jumble of things"—all of which fascinate Digby. These objects serve as the lead in to a story about a famous person. The factual accounts are interspersed with reactions from the kids and the book is liberally illustrated. It has a table of contents, an index, a brief glossary and an introduction to the cast ofcharacters. The design and format are more likely to get kids reading than are most biographies for this age group. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot