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King George: What Was His Problem?: The Whole Hilarious Story of the Revolution Review

Children are taught history. They turn into teenagers and find out that much of what they learned was prettified or their textbooks left out huge chunks of morally ambiguous grey matter. They go to college (some of them) and view with extreme skepticism any history, knowing as they do now that every historical text was written by someone with an agenda. And then sometimes, once in a great while, they return to the historical moments they learned about in their youth and try to figure out, really figure out, what happened all those centuries ago. In this case, author Steve Sheinkin's journey took a slightly different route. He was a writer of historical textbooks and to his chagrin he watched as the most interesting aspects of his recaps and historical pieces were thrown on the cutting room floor (so to speak) while the dull, rote, standard "facts" got left in. The solution? Write his own hilarious encapsulation of the American Revolution with every loony detail and fascinating fact intact and present. And if he happened to make the entire war more interesting and understandable in the process, so be it. Paired with illustrator Tim Robinson, Sheinkin isn't adverse to a little skimming himself, but for the most part this is probably the most interesting book on the revolution for kids you're going to find this side of Jean Fritz.

We all know about the American Revolution, right? There was this tea party and... uh.. Paul Revere rode around on a horse. And there was this crazy king who ruled us and "don't fire before you see the whites of their eyes" and... yeah. That stuff. A little foggy on the details? Well in "King George: What Was His Problem?" author Steve Sheinkin brings the 18th century into focus like no one else. With section headings like "Revere and That Other Guy" and "How to Start a Revolution", kids will learn just as much about George Washington's atrocious love poetry as they will the details of "General Burgoyne's Pretty Good Plan". The term "history comes alive" is trite, but if it weren't I'd definitely employ it when describing this book. Illustrations by Tim Robinson complement the action and back matter includes a "Whatever Happened To...?" section that talks about the rest of the major players' lives, heavily researched and beautifully presented Source Notes, and Quotation Notes.

What's nice about this title is that unlike a textbook it doesn't indulge in the notion that history is a series of unambiguous facts. History is a slippery eel here, and different accounts often receive equal attention. And be aware that even though Sheinkin likes to pepper his book with the mildly ridiculous, he never descends into rumor or hearsay. So basically if you're looking for some corroboration to that rumor you heard that George Washington had a particularly large tuchis, seek thee elsewhere. And just look at all the stuff that adults like myself never learned in school! Elements like the fact that British official John Malcolm ripped the tar and feathers (and skin) off his body to send in a box to the British government. Mind you, for the sake of time and space the author has had to pare down much of the information about this time period. Mostly this works but there are some simplifications that get a touch too simple. "No taxation without representation" is explained as meaning basically "We're not paying!" which isn't precisely true.

In terms of the morally grey areas studiously avoided by our fifth grade history teachers, Sheinkin does pretty well. For example, there will probably be a fair amount of kids who view the terrorizing of taxman Andrew Oliver for the violent mob behavior it was. What's so nice, though, is that Sheinkin tries to avoid telling child readers what to think. He just lays out the facts and lets them speak for themselves. Plus I like that he would stand up for the British soldiers too. "Did the soldiers deserve such hatred? Maybe not. Most were seventeen - and eighteen-year-old boys from poor families. This was the only job they could get . . ." And when it comes to first person accounts you sometimes run into sentences like "British and American witnesses tell different versions of the story. You'll have to listen to some of the evidence and come to your own conclusions." Heaven.

That said there is the question of the slaves and African Americans to consider here. Teaching kids about the Colonial Days in school always sort of skims over this stuff. We are taught that the American Revolution was a good thing. Yet how often are we taught that part of the reason some of the colonists rebelled was to hold onto their slaves? Remember, the British had abolished slavery in England by this point. How much longer before they attempted to do the same in America? Sheinkin to his credit makes note of the African-American and their contributions to the American cause whenever it is possible and appropriate to do so. And he does mention that the British opposed slavery and the American didn't. Yet he never attempts to explain or solve one of the biggest mysteries connection with the slaves; Why on earth did some of them help the American cause? Seriously! If the British winning might mean a potential end to slavery why did people like Prince Estabrook, John Glover's black and white regiment, and especially James Armistead (who remained enslaved until 1787) help the colonists? Did they not know the English were opposed? Sheinkin couldn't hope to cover every aspect of the war, but if he's writing a book that discusses the things we're never taught in school, I'd think that this would be the number one mystery to confront head on (or at least touch on at more length than is found here). A brief "the story of our country is not a fairy tale" is better than most books, but I still wish for more.

Illustrator Tim Robinson has done a fine job providing pictures of the major players and important maps from the time period. The major players are recognizable and pop up on the sides of pages unexpected. Robinson does, however, have this very odd habit of giving all his men long eyelashes. Benedict Arnold, for example, appears to have more in common with Flower from "Bambi" than as our favorite traitor. The effect of these lashes is a kind of Boy Georgeification of our Founding Fathers and their British opponents. I happen to find it kind of awesome, but there's no denying that it's an odd way to go about things. The design of the book itself is particularly good with the words integrated with images in fun ways. The eye moves about each page easily, but the pictures and sidebars are never so prolific as to prove distracting or overwhelming.

In the back of this book you will find a section of titles called a "Collection of quotes, memoirs, and other primary sources by Revolution participants," that is prefaced by a section explaining why first person accounts are fabulous. This book goes beyond merely teaching kids about the American Revolution. It goes so far as to turn some of them into history buffs cold. And while I wish some aspects had been covered a little more, that's my own agenda talking. Essentially this may be the ideal thing to hand to a kid who is required to read some kind of book about the Revolution. Who knows? They may end up enjoying history. Good stuff.

King George: What Was His Problem?: The Whole Hilarious Story of the Revolution Overview

KING GEORGE NEVER DID UNDERSTAND AMERICANS

“Entire books have been written about the causes of the American Revolution. This isn’t one of them.” What it is, instead, is utterly interesting, antedotes (John Hancock fixates on salmon), from the inside out (at the Battle of Eutaw Springs, hundreds of soldiers plunged into battle “naked as they were born”) close-up narrative filled with little-known details, lots of quotes that capture the spirit and voices of the principals (“If need be, I will raise one thousand men, subsist them at my own expense, and march myself at their head for the relief of Boston” -- George Washington), and action, It’s the story of the birth of our nation, complete with soldiers, spies, salmon sandwiches, and real facts you can’t help but want to tell to everyone you know.

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Customer Reviews

Great for all ages - R. Averett -
This is a great book for a reluctant historian in 4th grade and up to adult. It is fun to read and to share.

Raucous Royals Book Review: A history book faster than Billy Dawes famous ride... - Carlyn Beccia - Lynnfield, MA USA
I bought this book because of the title. I have always thought George III was a dullard so I was dieing to find out exactly what the title promised...what was his problem??? When I opened it up, I realized that this book was about the American Revolution (Yes, I missed the small print in the subtitle). Horror! Not another American history book. As a native of Boston, we laugh at the tourists who think the Battle of Bunker Hill was really fought on Bunker Hill. And there are only so many Boston duck tours and Lexington Battle reenactments that one person can stand in a lifetime. So you can imagine my disappointment when I realized the book that I thought would teach kids about royalty was really about those ruffians, our founding fathers. Don't kids have enough books on the American Revolution?

Boy was I wrong. Kids need this book.

First off, Sheinkin's book is full of amusing antidotes about real people and not the cardboard cutouts that appear in text books. For example, who would have thought that Sam Adams, the sharp dressed guy on my favorite beer, was a sloppy dresser and had a thing for salmon. Did you know that Patrick Henry was a bit of a motor mouth? Yes, we hear tales of Washington's troops being a bunch of hooligans, but did you know that Washington also had to break up a thousand-man snow ball fight between Massachusetts and Virginia?

What really sucked me in was not just the trivia. Sheinkin has a rare ability to tell history from all sides without getting too weighed down in the details. Best of all, he remembered the ladies. For example, did you know that Hannah Davis could watch the minutemen battling from her house? Have you ever thought about what Dorothy Quincy was doing in the middle of the melee? You will have to get the book to find out.

Readers also get plenty of real quotes, letters, maps, and George Washington's bad love poems. The text book information is there, but the pace is faster than Billy Dawes famous ride (Sheinkin calls this section "Revere and That Other Guy") Yes, King George III only makes a few cameo appearances, but the reader won't miss him. (I still think he is a dullard) Overall, what really makes King George work is the fact that readers can take away far more than George's dilemma. You start to see what everyone's problem was, and most importantly, how so many colorful personalities (with very different opinions) came together for one goal.

A quick mention on the art: Tim Robinson's hilarious pen and ink illustrations also give an extra layer of sauciness to the characters. George has the perpetual "I can't believe I am being disobeyed" look of shock and Robinson captures the blustering, larger-than-life nature of Ethan Allen perfectly.

Note: The age range is 9-12, but I really hate when Amazon dumps books into this category. The age range should say 9+ because adults will enjoy this book as much as kids.

Fascinating History Book - Patricia S. Blair - Los Angeles, California USA
I purchased this book for a young friend. When it arrived, I was curious and started to read. Found it fascinating and read through the whole book. It's full of little known fascinating information, presented in a most humanizing way. Sent it on to my 12-year old friend - who sat right down and read it through it just two days and loved it as well. What a great way to move the study of the American Revolution beyond a list of dates and names!

Fantastic--Every 8th Grader Should Read This - K. Hazelrigg - Oklahoma
History is not my thing, so understand that when you view those 5 stars.

For years Steve Sheinkin has written history textbooks. In his research he has come across some great stories that are not often told, but the textbook companies have never allowed him to include those nuggets in their books. Sheinkin finally decided to take all those stories and write his own book. And that's all you get--interesting tidbits, stories, and quotes that help the reader view those involved in the Revolution as real, living, breathing people, not just...well, dead guys on paper.

If you teach 5th or 8th grade social studies, read this book. It could have a strong impact on students who are struggling to learn facts about the American Revolution.

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Aug 13, 2010 00:43:05

Children's Books

Thursday, August 12, 2010