What do you think?
Rate this book
Columbus
Born in 1451 in the seafaring nation of Genoa in northern Italy, Christopher Columbus grew up watching ships sail into the harbor loaded with riches from Egypt, Spain, England, and Belgium. Columbus was convinced that he could gain gold, silk, ivory, and much personal wealth for himself if he were to sail west from Europe to the East and trade with China and India. When Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon finally provided him with three ships, a crew, and supplies for his journey, Columbus embarked on the first of four voyages to the East in 1492. Although he never reached Asia, he did land in Central and South America, establishing a firm foothold in America and opening up wider European exploration to the new continent and other foreign lands. Demi portrays Columbus as a great navigator and explorer, but she also provides a balanced view of his accomplishments, describing his enslavement of the native Taino Indians of Central America and his mismanagement of the colonies that he established in the Indies. Using Chinese paintbrushes and inks, gold overlays, and Italian marbled paper from Florence, Italy, she paints Columbus’s vast world with characteristic skill and beauty.
58 pages, Hardcover
First published September 18, 2012
2 people are currently reading
44 people want to read
About the author
Demi
181 books179 followersDemi (September 2, 1942) born Charlotte Dumaresq Hunt, is an award-winning children’s book author and illustrator. During her career she has published over 300 titles.
Demi was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She is the great-grand daughter of the American painter William Morris Hunt, and the great-grand niece of architect Richard Morris Hunt. Demi earned her nickname as a young child when her father started calling her demi because she was half the size of her sister.
She studied art at Instituto Allende, Mexico, and with Sister Corita at the Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles. She was a Fulbright scholar at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India where she received her Master’s degree.
Demi is known for her biographies for spiritual figures including Buddha, Krishna, Lao Tzu, Jesus, Mary (mother of Jesus), Muhammad, Rumi, Francis of Assisi, Gandhi, and the Dalai Lama.
In 1990, Demi and her husband Tze-si “Jesse” Huang represented the United States at the First Children’s International Book Conference in Beijing.
Source: Wikipedia
Demi was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She is the great-grand daughter of the American painter William Morris Hunt, and the great-grand niece of architect Richard Morris Hunt. Demi earned her nickname as a young child when her father started calling her demi because she was half the size of her sister.
She studied art at Instituto Allende, Mexico, and with Sister Corita at the Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles. She was a Fulbright scholar at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India where she received her Master’s degree.
Demi is known for her biographies for spiritual figures including Buddha, Krishna, Lao Tzu, Jesus, Mary (mother of Jesus), Muhammad, Rumi, Francis of Assisi, Gandhi, and the Dalai Lama.
In 1990, Demi and her husband Tze-si “Jesse” Huang represented the United States at the First Children’s International Book Conference in Beijing.
Source: Wikipedia
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 8, 2024
With her 2012 picture book Columbus, author and illustrator Demi both textually and visually presents the biography of Genoese navigator and explorer Christopher Columbus (whose four transatlantic voyages between 1492 and 1504 basically started the so-called Age of Exploration and ushered in contact between Europe and the Americas). And yes, Demi explores Columbus' life story extensively, informatively (and with visually stunning, with wonderful accompanying artwork, with pictures that are colourful, realistic and also at least to and for my eyes historically accurate, culturally authentic), but sadly and unfortunately also more than a trifle verbally draggingly and especially so since Columbus is a picture book and thus meant for younger readers, but that in my humble opinion Demi's narrative voice for Columbus often tends to read quite textbook-like and thus not all that engagingly (and how in particular my inner child has found Columbus far too often showing rather too much information dropping from Demi's pen and as such being somewhat verbally overwhelming and occasionally even downright mind-numbing, more like a rather heavy duty school lesson than a story that sparks and retains reading interest).
Now even though I personally pretty much despise Christopher Columbus as a person (and how he and those who came after him willingly, knowingly and deliberately wreaked havoc, genocide and some supposedly "divinely" ordained manifest destiny on the native populations of North and South America with their exploration, with settlement, slavery, missionary bullying etc.), I do certainly appreciate that Demi portrays Columbus as a great navigator and explorer, but also provides with Columbus a rather and nicely balanced view, describing not only Christopher Columbus' achievements but also his enslavement of the native Taino Indians of Central America and his mismanagement of the colonies that he established in the Indies. However, while I certainly and definitely have enjoyed Demi's sense of textual balance (at least to a point), personally speaking, I if truth be told still do not consider there to be in any way even remotely enough author criticism and condemnation present in Columbus for me to rate Columbus with more than a rather generous three stars (that Columbus is recommended, but for me even with Demi's occasional critical words still too inherently positive regarding Christopher Columbus, and not to mention that Demi's author's note for Columbus with its bibliographical sources, while appreciated is also rather user unfriendly and not easy to read, and indeed, that while the explorers, while Europeans brought smallpox and measles to the Americas, it is generally believed that they actually brought syphilis from the Americas to Europe, so that yes, if using Columbus for educational purposes, there are definitely some caveats to consider and to worry about, but that Demi's combination of text and images for Columbus is most definitely superior to those books on Christopher Columbus that are only and one hundred percent laudatory and sometimes glorifyingly so).
Now even though I personally pretty much despise Christopher Columbus as a person (and how he and those who came after him willingly, knowingly and deliberately wreaked havoc, genocide and some supposedly "divinely" ordained manifest destiny on the native populations of North and South America with their exploration, with settlement, slavery, missionary bullying etc.), I do certainly appreciate that Demi portrays Columbus as a great navigator and explorer, but also provides with Columbus a rather and nicely balanced view, describing not only Christopher Columbus' achievements but also his enslavement of the native Taino Indians of Central America and his mismanagement of the colonies that he established in the Indies. However, while I certainly and definitely have enjoyed Demi's sense of textual balance (at least to a point), personally speaking, I if truth be told still do not consider there to be in any way even remotely enough author criticism and condemnation present in Columbus for me to rate Columbus with more than a rather generous three stars (that Columbus is recommended, but for me even with Demi's occasional critical words still too inherently positive regarding Christopher Columbus, and not to mention that Demi's author's note for Columbus with its bibliographical sources, while appreciated is also rather user unfriendly and not easy to read, and indeed, that while the explorers, while Europeans brought smallpox and measles to the Americas, it is generally believed that they actually brought syphilis from the Americas to Europe, so that yes, if using Columbus for educational purposes, there are definitely some caveats to consider and to worry about, but that Demi's combination of text and images for Columbus is most definitely superior to those books on Christopher Columbus that are only and one hundred percent laudatory and sometimes glorifyingly so).
October 12, 2020
The immensely talented Demi, whose many picture-book biographies include such titles as
Joan of Arc
,
Tutankhamun
,
Alexander the Great
and
Marco Polo
, turns here to the story of Christopher Columbus, the Geonoese sailor whose voyage in 1492 ushered in a new era of contact between Europe and the Americas. Demi explores Columbus' life story, from his birth in 1451 to a family of weavers, through his early years as a sailor; from his efforts to get some European monarch to fund an exploratory voyage westward, in search of the (east) Indies, to his various voyages after his landfall on San Salvador on October 12th, 1492. Continually convinced that he was close to discovering the passage to Asia, and always wanting gold, he convinced Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain to fund many voyages, and although he did not succeed in either aim, his conviction that one could travel westward from Europe changed the course of human history...
Today, as I write this review of Columbus, it is Columbus Day, marking the 528th year since modern contact was made between the peoples of Europe and those of the Americas. It is a holiday that has become controversial of late, dividing opinion between those who feel we should not celebrate the day, given the disastrous consequences that first contact had for the native peoples of this hemisphere, and those who believe that, however flawed the man, he did achieve something unprecedented in human history, and laid the groundwork for the modern world we know today. Some cities have replaced Columbus Day with an 'Indigenous Peoples' Day,' while other communities continue to honor the great explorer. Complicating the matter is the fact that Columbus Day has become intertwined with Italian-American identity in many quarters, and is one of the few moments in the national calendar when this community is honored and remembered. For my part, I have little sympathy with the cultural and historical vandalism currently consuming the (so-called) left, but also have no interest in whitewashing history. I tend to believe that historical achievements should be remembered and honored, even when those who achieved them were far from perfect, recalling that old phrase that "we see further than our ancestors because we stand on their shoulders." With that in mind, and given my all-consuming interest in children's literature, I decided to read and review a number of different picture-book biographies of Christopher Columbus, as a means of marking the day. The titles I chose include David A. Adler's A Picture Book of Christopher Columbus (1991), Peter Sís' Follow the Dream: The Story of Christopher Columbus (1991) and Demi's Columbus (2012).
Demi's Columbus is the last of the three that I have read, and it is the most informative. The author attempts to walk a middle line between the two poles of thought concerning Columbus, acknowledging the man's great accomplishments, while also exploring the terrible things he and his men (both with and without his permission and knowledge) did to the native peoples of the Caribbean. For the most part I think she is successful, although I was stopped in my tracks by her statement that syphilis was brought to the new world by Europeans, as this is by no means the historical consensus. While some do hold that view, my understanding is that most evidence points to it being the other way around: while Europeans brought diseases like smallpox with them to the Americas, they brought diseases like syphilis back with them to Europe, from the Americas. This was a very odd mistake on Demi's part, I thought! Leaving that issues aside, this was an informative and educational book, and Demi's artwork is absolutely gorgeous! Perhaps this could be paired with Peter Sís' Follow the Dream: The Story of Christopher Columbus for a more balanced view of the subject. The Demi titles emphasizes the historical record, while the Sís emphasizes just how groundbreaking Columbus' thinking and actions were. Because of some of the subject matter, I would not recommend this one to very young children, but think it would make an admirable work on its eponymous subject for picture-book readers age seven and above.
Today, as I write this review of Columbus, it is Columbus Day, marking the 528th year since modern contact was made between the peoples of Europe and those of the Americas. It is a holiday that has become controversial of late, dividing opinion between those who feel we should not celebrate the day, given the disastrous consequences that first contact had for the native peoples of this hemisphere, and those who believe that, however flawed the man, he did achieve something unprecedented in human history, and laid the groundwork for the modern world we know today. Some cities have replaced Columbus Day with an 'Indigenous Peoples' Day,' while other communities continue to honor the great explorer. Complicating the matter is the fact that Columbus Day has become intertwined with Italian-American identity in many quarters, and is one of the few moments in the national calendar when this community is honored and remembered. For my part, I have little sympathy with the cultural and historical vandalism currently consuming the (so-called) left, but also have no interest in whitewashing history. I tend to believe that historical achievements should be remembered and honored, even when those who achieved them were far from perfect, recalling that old phrase that "we see further than our ancestors because we stand on their shoulders." With that in mind, and given my all-consuming interest in children's literature, I decided to read and review a number of different picture-book biographies of Christopher Columbus, as a means of marking the day. The titles I chose include David A. Adler's A Picture Book of Christopher Columbus (1991), Peter Sís' Follow the Dream: The Story of Christopher Columbus (1991) and Demi's Columbus (2012).
Demi's Columbus is the last of the three that I have read, and it is the most informative. The author attempts to walk a middle line between the two poles of thought concerning Columbus, acknowledging the man's great accomplishments, while also exploring the terrible things he and his men (both with and without his permission and knowledge) did to the native peoples of the Caribbean. For the most part I think she is successful, although I was stopped in my tracks by her statement that syphilis was brought to the new world by Europeans, as this is by no means the historical consensus. While some do hold that view, my understanding is that most evidence points to it being the other way around: while Europeans brought diseases like smallpox with them to the Americas, they brought diseases like syphilis back with them to Europe, from the Americas. This was a very odd mistake on Demi's part, I thought! Leaving that issues aside, this was an informative and educational book, and Demi's artwork is absolutely gorgeous! Perhaps this could be paired with Peter Sís' Follow the Dream: The Story of Christopher Columbus for a more balanced view of the subject. The Demi titles emphasizes the historical record, while the Sís emphasizes just how groundbreaking Columbus' thinking and actions were. Because of some of the subject matter, I would not recommend this one to very young children, but think it would make an admirable work on its eponymous subject for picture-book readers age seven and above.
October 30, 2012
Author/illustrator Demi is well known for her gorgeous illustrated biographies for children, which range from volumes on Joan of Arc, Genghis Khan, Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Tutankhamun, and Marco Polo to biographies of religious figures such as the Virgin Mary, Jesus, Buddha, and Muhammad. The most recent entry in her series is an examination of the iconic explorer Christopher Columbus.
Demi makes an effort to balance Columbus' legitimate accomplishments in navigation with the darker side of his story.
Demi's narrative is organized chronologically, in traditional biography style, and we learn how the young Christopher was fascinated at an early age by ships and sailors that arrived in the port of Genoa, where he was born. At fourteen Columbus left home to become a sailor, quickly becoming an expert in navigation, studying the stars and predicting weather. We learn that Columbus was shipwrecked off the coast of Portugal, and learned to speak Portuguese and Spanish. He even sailed to Iceland and above the Arctic Circle.
But as we know, Columbus dreamed of more--of finding a route to the East by sailing west from Europe. But who would fund such a trip? After the Portuguese king turned him down, Columbus tried the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella. Initially rejected by the monarchs' advisors, Columbus persevered and eventually Isabella was persuaded to outfit three ships for his expedition. It's hard to imagine the panic the sailors must have felt on such a long voyage--two months on the open sea. Demi's narrative makes us feel the joy the sailors felt on finally spotting signs that land was near--birds, crayfish, even a branch with fruit, and then the cry from an anonymous sailor of "Land!"
The aftermath of the dangerous voyage was not so happy. Demi writes that the natives were friendly but there was not much gold or other riches, and no great palaces. But the friendliness did not last, and the author points out that Columbus "disrespected their culture and treated them as no more than slaves." In her text and images, we see the natives being exploited by the Spanish, and how eventually the males were forced to give up their lands and work for the Spaniards. European diseases decimated those who were not killed by exhaustion, and hundreds of thousands died, virtually wiping out the native population of that part of the world.
Demi's biography gives us information on the rest of Columbus' career and life--including his triumphant homecoming to Spain and his other explorations for the Spanish crown. However, his mismanagement of the colonies led to his imprisonment and trial in Spain, and he lost his position as governor of Hispaniola. But Columbus would not retire! He continued to explore, reaching other islands in the Caribbean on his endless quest for a passage to the East.
Demi concludes that Columbus "died a magnificent failure," having destroyed the Taino culture and enslaved the islanders. "Yet he was one of the greatest navigators who ever lived...and his voyages had changed the face of the world forever!" Is that a bit like saying "Hitler was responsible for the murder of millions of people...but he was a great orator."????
While I would have liked to see even more of the text--or perhaps an afterword--devoted to how Columbus and his men treated the native population--I do give Demi credit for at least including this aspect of the explorer's life. It's a biography well worth reading, and at 64 pages, provides plenty of material for a report. Once again Demi outdoes herself with her illustrations, painted with Chinese paintbrushes and inks, gold overlays, and Italian marbled paper from Italy. The details in each illustration are beautiful and well worth plenty of time perusing. Back matter includes a splendid map showing Columbus' various voyages, and an author's note at the beginning of the book discusses her sources for this biography.
Demi makes an effort to balance Columbus' legitimate accomplishments in navigation with the darker side of his story.
Demi's narrative is organized chronologically, in traditional biography style, and we learn how the young Christopher was fascinated at an early age by ships and sailors that arrived in the port of Genoa, where he was born. At fourteen Columbus left home to become a sailor, quickly becoming an expert in navigation, studying the stars and predicting weather. We learn that Columbus was shipwrecked off the coast of Portugal, and learned to speak Portuguese and Spanish. He even sailed to Iceland and above the Arctic Circle.
But as we know, Columbus dreamed of more--of finding a route to the East by sailing west from Europe. But who would fund such a trip? After the Portuguese king turned him down, Columbus tried the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella. Initially rejected by the monarchs' advisors, Columbus persevered and eventually Isabella was persuaded to outfit three ships for his expedition. It's hard to imagine the panic the sailors must have felt on such a long voyage--two months on the open sea. Demi's narrative makes us feel the joy the sailors felt on finally spotting signs that land was near--birds, crayfish, even a branch with fruit, and then the cry from an anonymous sailor of "Land!"
The aftermath of the dangerous voyage was not so happy. Demi writes that the natives were friendly but there was not much gold or other riches, and no great palaces. But the friendliness did not last, and the author points out that Columbus "disrespected their culture and treated them as no more than slaves." In her text and images, we see the natives being exploited by the Spanish, and how eventually the males were forced to give up their lands and work for the Spaniards. European diseases decimated those who were not killed by exhaustion, and hundreds of thousands died, virtually wiping out the native population of that part of the world.
Demi's biography gives us information on the rest of Columbus' career and life--including his triumphant homecoming to Spain and his other explorations for the Spanish crown. However, his mismanagement of the colonies led to his imprisonment and trial in Spain, and he lost his position as governor of Hispaniola. But Columbus would not retire! He continued to explore, reaching other islands in the Caribbean on his endless quest for a passage to the East.
Demi concludes that Columbus "died a magnificent failure," having destroyed the Taino culture and enslaved the islanders. "Yet he was one of the greatest navigators who ever lived...and his voyages had changed the face of the world forever!" Is that a bit like saying "Hitler was responsible for the murder of millions of people...but he was a great orator."????
While I would have liked to see even more of the text--or perhaps an afterword--devoted to how Columbus and his men treated the native population--I do give Demi credit for at least including this aspect of the explorer's life. It's a biography well worth reading, and at 64 pages, provides plenty of material for a report. Once again Demi outdoes herself with her illustrations, painted with Chinese paintbrushes and inks, gold overlays, and Italian marbled paper from Italy. The details in each illustration are beautiful and well worth plenty of time perusing. Back matter includes a splendid map showing Columbus' various voyages, and an author's note at the beginning of the book discusses her sources for this biography.
October 25, 2012
Richie’s Picks: COLUMBUS by Demi, Amazon Children’s Publishing, September 2012, 64p., ISBN: 978-0-7614-6167-8
“Columbus Sailed the Ocean
(‘Pop! Goes the Weasel’)
All around the great wide world
Columbus sailed the ocean
To prove the world was big & round
That’s real devotion!”
-- Educational holiday song available on a bunch of online websites
“One of the [relief ship] captains was Christopher Columbus’s brother Bartolomeo. Upon arrival, he discovered that the Spaniards were exploiting the Indians. They were stealing from them, had cut off the ears of one man, and had put the Indian chief in chains. Violence spread and Columbus could not stop it. Columbus sent back four ships to Spain with five hundred Taino Indians who were sold as slaves on the European market. And he continued to practice slavery in the Indies.
“Every male over the age of fourteen had to pay gold every three months to the shaky government Columbus had set up. The males were forced to work for the Spaniards after giving up their land and belongings. Many began to die of exhaustion and European diseases, including smallpox, measles, and syphilis. Soon hundreds of thousands of Caribbean Indians died, and eventually only a handful survived.”
Thanks to today’s popularity of picture books for older readers, we have a steady flow of short-yet-revealing biographies like this one. Author-illustrator Demi does a terrific job of showing how Christopher Columbus “was one of the greatest navigators who ever lived,” that “his voyages had changed the face of the world forever,” and that he was at the same time a racist tyrant. Certainly many will come away from this book wondering why there is a U.S. national holiday in honor of a mass murderer.
Demi’s story about the life of Columbus makes so much sense. She details his years of extensive sailing experience up and down the European/African side of the Atlantic prior to his first attempting to cross the ocean (“sailing west to reach the East”). It was during these years prior to 1492 that he really came to understand the ocean and figured out that he could ride northeast winds off of the coast of Africa as he headed west and would be able to take advantage of westerly winds if he followed a more northerly route back to Spain.
When it came to seeking out gold and spices, this was one guy who persisted. He kept conning Ferdinand and Isabella into giving him one chance after another. He’d get another bunch of ships in order to go back yet again and seek the riches he believed were there.
“Landing on Venezuela’s Paria Peninsula, he became the first European explorer to set foot on the American mainland since the Vikings five centuries earlier. The land was so beautiful, Columbus was sure he had reached The Garden of Eden.”
That is another thing we learn from this biography: the manner in which Christianity was such a big political deal…just like it is today. You have Ferdinand and Isabella driving all of the Muslims out of Spain and then letting Columbus be Columbus…just as long as he converted all of the so-called heathens to Christianity (and kept seeking those riches).
Demi concludes that Columbus was “a magnificent failure” while, at the same time, she acknowledges his contributions. I find it to be a fair-minded and fascinating look at a guy responsible for so many great department store and car dealer sales every October.
Richie Partington
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.com
BudNotBuddy@aol.com
Moderator http://groups.yahoo.com/group/middle_... http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/people/facult...
“Columbus Sailed the Ocean
(‘Pop! Goes the Weasel’)
All around the great wide world
Columbus sailed the ocean
To prove the world was big & round
That’s real devotion!”
-- Educational holiday song available on a bunch of online websites
“One of the [relief ship] captains was Christopher Columbus’s brother Bartolomeo. Upon arrival, he discovered that the Spaniards were exploiting the Indians. They were stealing from them, had cut off the ears of one man, and had put the Indian chief in chains. Violence spread and Columbus could not stop it. Columbus sent back four ships to Spain with five hundred Taino Indians who were sold as slaves on the European market. And he continued to practice slavery in the Indies.
“Every male over the age of fourteen had to pay gold every three months to the shaky government Columbus had set up. The males were forced to work for the Spaniards after giving up their land and belongings. Many began to die of exhaustion and European diseases, including smallpox, measles, and syphilis. Soon hundreds of thousands of Caribbean Indians died, and eventually only a handful survived.”
Thanks to today’s popularity of picture books for older readers, we have a steady flow of short-yet-revealing biographies like this one. Author-illustrator Demi does a terrific job of showing how Christopher Columbus “was one of the greatest navigators who ever lived,” that “his voyages had changed the face of the world forever,” and that he was at the same time a racist tyrant. Certainly many will come away from this book wondering why there is a U.S. national holiday in honor of a mass murderer.
Demi’s story about the life of Columbus makes so much sense. She details his years of extensive sailing experience up and down the European/African side of the Atlantic prior to his first attempting to cross the ocean (“sailing west to reach the East”). It was during these years prior to 1492 that he really came to understand the ocean and figured out that he could ride northeast winds off of the coast of Africa as he headed west and would be able to take advantage of westerly winds if he followed a more northerly route back to Spain.
When it came to seeking out gold and spices, this was one guy who persisted. He kept conning Ferdinand and Isabella into giving him one chance after another. He’d get another bunch of ships in order to go back yet again and seek the riches he believed were there.
“Landing on Venezuela’s Paria Peninsula, he became the first European explorer to set foot on the American mainland since the Vikings five centuries earlier. The land was so beautiful, Columbus was sure he had reached The Garden of Eden.”
That is another thing we learn from this biography: the manner in which Christianity was such a big political deal…just like it is today. You have Ferdinand and Isabella driving all of the Muslims out of Spain and then letting Columbus be Columbus…just as long as he converted all of the so-called heathens to Christianity (and kept seeking those riches).
Demi concludes that Columbus was “a magnificent failure” while, at the same time, she acknowledges his contributions. I find it to be a fair-minded and fascinating look at a guy responsible for so many great department store and car dealer sales every October.
Richie Partington
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.com
BudNotBuddy@aol.com
Moderator http://groups.yahoo.com/group/middle_... http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/people/facult...
October 13, 2014
I am fasting coming to respect and truly enjoy these picture books from Demi, although I am discovering there are tons of them and they seem to come from all sorts of different publishers. This book is a picture book biography with lots of text and information about the man we know as Christopher Columbus, it was interesting and stood out odd to me thinking of him as Christopher to find his siblings all with very Italian names, and it was at the same moment my husband was telling me the trivia of his real name an italian version of it. This book is gorgeous that cannot be debated. But what is really neat is how this book seems to give more details than I have ever really known about his life from the beginning and early childhood until the day he dies. This book allows a reader to follow along his entire American adventure back and forth across the ocean eight times and then even in death seemingly four times. Columbus by Demi is not just positive or just negative, but a good measure of both showing a truth about the man and how he did some evil things but also found a great power to lean his life toward in remorse, or at least that is the story that I read in the pages. It seemingly is the truth about history in general. There are many terrible things and events that changed our world and got us to where we are, but the bad often works in times for things that are good. I enjoyed this one and I look forward to reading more biographical books from Demi in the future.
*Thanks to Amazon Vine for providing a copy for review.*
scheduled: http://creativemadnessmama.com/blog/2...
*Thanks to Amazon Vine for providing a copy for review.*
scheduled: http://creativemadnessmama.com/blog/2...
November 29, 2012
I've been a fan of Demi for a lot of years now. She chooses the most fascinating subjects to explore and her illustrations reflect the historical traditions she tells. And this book doesn't disappoint.
This is far from a whitewashed version of Columbus. Yes, he was an amazing explorer who forever changed the landscape of our world. He was brave and faithful and by all accounts a loving father. But he was also an epic failure who over-exaggerated his success, set a precedence for enslaving the natives of the Caribbean and refused to accept fault in the mis-management of the early American colonies. With very little judgment and great respect, Demi manages to balance the hero we celebrate with the fallible man whom he really was.
Of course the illustrations are breathtaking. The title page alone has so much texture and layers that the pictures appear three dimensional. The seascapes are especially impressive, but the Portuguese court scenes also deserve special mention for their attention to detail and beautiful overlays. By using Chinese painting techniques on Italian marbled paper, the illustrations are classic Demi with an homage to Columbus' roots.
The one downfall of this book was the lack of integration between text and illustration. I felt like I was reading the captions on paintings in a museum rather than a historical adventure. An overuse of passive voice and rather dry storytelling techniques leave a little something to be desired.
This is far from a whitewashed version of Columbus. Yes, he was an amazing explorer who forever changed the landscape of our world. He was brave and faithful and by all accounts a loving father. But he was also an epic failure who over-exaggerated his success, set a precedence for enslaving the natives of the Caribbean and refused to accept fault in the mis-management of the early American colonies. With very little judgment and great respect, Demi manages to balance the hero we celebrate with the fallible man whom he really was.
Of course the illustrations are breathtaking. The title page alone has so much texture and layers that the pictures appear three dimensional. The seascapes are especially impressive, but the Portuguese court scenes also deserve special mention for their attention to detail and beautiful overlays. By using Chinese painting techniques on Italian marbled paper, the illustrations are classic Demi with an homage to Columbus' roots.
The one downfall of this book was the lack of integration between text and illustration. I felt like I was reading the captions on paintings in a museum rather than a historical adventure. An overuse of passive voice and rather dry storytelling techniques leave a little something to be desired.
December 9, 2012
I really love books by Demi so had no problem picking up this one. Demi tells her stories beautifully and always includes information I had never known about her subjects. Columbus is given a full biography and his life in grandeur and in fail are well covered. The art work as always in Demi books is outstanding. To me, it seems that Columbus was caught in a lie of his own making in telling that he had found massive riches and gold in the Indies when he hadn't and his effort to prove a lie was true was his undoing. After Isabella died, who always chose to believe him, King Ferdinand chose not to receive Columbus in court.
October 9, 2013
A great educational book for your children over the preschool age. My 5 yr old loved it. Lots of good information with beautiful pictures that will help keep children engaged. My son is currently learning about early America and Columbus and so was really into this book. It's somewhere between a level 3 and 4 reader at least, and is probably for kids with a larger attention span, or advanced readers. A great addition to any children's library.
August 13, 2019
Great little book to introduce children to the life and work of Columbus. No hero worship here, just a straight forward account of his life and work. He was a flawed individual, but accomplished much. If you would like to introduce a child to this historical figure and have the opportunity to speak into many of the issues that face us today, this is a good too. Recommend. Quick read!
February 12, 2018
Fascinating picture-book biography of one of the world’s greatest navigators with richly detailed illustrations of his many voyages and unvarnished descriptions of his monumental failures as an explorer.
January 31, 2019
I'm actually really glad Demi doesn't sugar-coat how awful Columbus really was. My favorite line was "He died a magnificent failure."
September 25, 2014
Columbus written by Demi is a biography that tells of the life and many adventures of Columbus. This Biography begins with the birth of Columbus in Italy and gives back ground information on how his desire to travel came to be. Columbus gives facts about his many voyages, and the truth about how he gained possession of land. It also focuses on the Europeans relationship with the Native Americans. This book tells the story of how America was discovered based on historical documentation. It informs the reader that Columbus did not discover America and he stole the land from people who were already here. It also elaborates on the fact that Columbus played a major part in stealing possessions, murdering and enslaving many Natives. This book also gives a peak into the history of the Natives. Columbus states that they willingly gave to the Europeans,and treated them with kindness.
Columbus is a very engaging book that kept me wanting to turn the page. I was so engaged because I noticed that it is not your typical children’s book about the discovery of America. This book simply took factual information and turned it into a story book. It did not try to cover up the history of America, but told the stories just as historical documents said it happened. But because of the type of information and pictures that are in this book, I would recommend it be used at an upper grade level such as 5th or 6th grade. I would allow the children to read the book independently and then let them formulate their own opinions about what happened. This book is great for a history lesson on how America was founded. Although some of the images are disturbing, it allows children to understand the events that really happened in their history.
Columbus is a very engaging book that kept me wanting to turn the page. I was so engaged because I noticed that it is not your typical children’s book about the discovery of America. This book simply took factual information and turned it into a story book. It did not try to cover up the history of America, but told the stories just as historical documents said it happened. But because of the type of information and pictures that are in this book, I would recommend it be used at an upper grade level such as 5th or 6th grade. I would allow the children to read the book independently and then let them formulate their own opinions about what happened. This book is great for a history lesson on how America was founded. Although some of the images are disturbing, it allows children to understand the events that really happened in their history.
April 13, 2015
Overall, this is a very unique account of Columbus for children. Very unique illustrations - medieval-ish. I mostly liked this, though, because it was rather detailed about Columbus and his discovery of America - more than any other account intended for kids. I don't think it's too detailed for an elementary audience, however. My 6-year-old enjoyed it. I think the aspect I valued most was that the account doesn't end with Columbus discovering America, the end. It goes on to tell about how Columbus enslaved the natives and was the beginning of why the natives did not trust Europeans. It didn't treat Columbus as an unquestioned hero, but rather a skilled, power-hungry man that made a discovery that changed history. It is by no means too graphic, although be warned, that there is an illustration of Europeans getting slaughtered by the natives when they were left behind by Columbus and crew after the Santa Maria sank. Maybe not a great 1st book about Columbus for very young kids, but for me, 1st grade and up, at least.
January 29, 2015
Nonfiction/Biography. This was a great book if you are interested in sharing a lot of details from Columbus' life. it is straight forward and holds your attention so I feel as though it would be good as a read aloud with young children. I believe it should be broken up into different sessions though because it is a little lengthy and could lose some kids after several pages.The pictures will certainly keep kids engaged. For younger children I might pick the images to show as some of them are a bit graphic for young children.
In terms of applications of this book, it is a good example of a biography, so if you wanted your students to learn about biographies or perhaps even begin writing one this is a good example. It would also be a great text for a report on a historical figure for young children because it is easy to understand.
In terms of applications of this book, it is a good example of a biography, so if you wanted your students to learn about biographies or perhaps even begin writing one this is a good example. It would also be a great text for a report on a historical figure for young children because it is easy to understand.
February 19, 2015
Nonfiction/Biography. I found this book to contain a lot of information about Columbus' life. The majority of it stayed true to other biographies I have read concerning Christopher Columbus' life with a few differences that make it a bit more appropriate for young readers. The text itself definitely can be used in the classroom but mostly with the upper elementary grades (3+). I find that the images are what I enjoyed most about the book itself and, if chosen correctly, these images can be used for the younger grades (K-2) when discussing the topic of Columbus in the classroom or the text can be used (in sections, as it is longer) as part of a read aloud. Certainly, this text can be introduced when discussing the genre of a biography and act as an example of how one might be written or created. All in all, I enjoyed the text and the pictures!
July 15, 2014
This is my favorite picture book biography on Christopher Columbus. It was by far the most thorough and honest depiction of his life, travels, and relentlessness. After reading this I am eager to read more works of Demi, someone I have read very little of but am extremely impressed with. Columbus is a deceivingly lengthy story; educators may wish to break it up into two sessions if sharing with a class.
March 19, 2013
This is a very detailed book on Christopher Columbus' life even after his exploration. This is a really good book to have for early middle schoolers to learn about Columbus. It may be a little long to read as a class so this book could be used for students to read individually when researching Christopher Columbus.
November 17, 2014
This is one of the best biographies I have ever read about Columbus...and I loved the illustrations. It tells the story of this explorer but does not try to sugar coat the costly mistakes he made. I think this book provides an intensely interesting perspective on this man and gives the opportunity to discuss with children some of the issues surrounding his successes and failures. Very good!
May 6, 2013
Interesting introduction to the explorer.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews