Mississippi Steamboatman

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8 Shreve and his river boats opened up the Ohio, Mississippi, Red and Missouri Rivers to passenger and freight traffic and contributed to the settlement of the American Midwest. There were legal as well as technological obstacles to trade on the inland rivers, as the Fulton-Livingston interest had a monopoly on all steamboat traffic in the state of Louisiana. Shreve and his capable lawyer were able at length to break the monopoly. In addition to the legal battles, there is plenty of action and adventure, including military campaigns (Shreve fought with Andrew Jackson for the defense of New Orleans during the War of 1812), boiler explosions and waterway hazards. McCall fictionalizes some conversations, but they are not obtrusive, and to some extent this fictionalizing leavens the paragraphs of narrative, although some youngsters will not accept this book as nonfiction. Shreve was an important figure in American history, commerce and navigation, yet there is almost no information available on him, and this interesting account, illustrated with contemporary prints and maps, fills a need. Phyllis Ingram, Fairfax County Public Library, Va.