clipped from flickr.com

This photo is of a statue of the noble, gutsy, heroic Sacagawea.

I just finished reading Neuberger’s Lewis & Clark Expedition to Carman, Sudoku, and Doodle (when he felt like listening, which was surprisingly often.) It was more textbook-ish than what we typically read. We’ve read a lot of historical fiction, but this one was strictly history. It didn’t read like a textbook, though.

It left me misty eyed and goose-bumpy a few times — an unusual response from a history book — but such an amazing story deserves such a response. It was a quick read, but gave a terrific overview of the expedition as well as enough detail to introduce the reader to some of the personalities and quirks of those in the party. The telling of the struggles, victories, and turns of events were far from dry.

Admittedly, the children didn’t enjoy it as much as I did. But I and they (a few times they told me, “Mom, we already know what’s going to happen!”) think they have a good understanding of the expedition, in part because we watched a National Geographic episode about the Expedition before reading the book. So, with that introduction, they were able to understand and retain more of what we read. We generally do it the other way around – that is, read a book, then watch a video. This experience has made me re-think that order. – milkmaid