MUST READ BOOK: John Smith

There are many wonderful books in the world. My mission, and I choose to accept it--oh yes, I wholeheartedly accept it--is to help people find those books. It makes my English teacher lovin' heart even happier when I steer young people to those books.

This book is not to be missed.

Although this book is 92 pages long, it can be read by all ages, or to all ages. I read it aloud to children aged 5, 4, and 2. The two year old wasn't that into it, but the older children were riveted. What I mostly took away from this biography is that John Smith has been gypped. He is entitled to star in action adventure movies about his life replete with gunpowder experiments, enslavement, war-time spying, and his being thrown overboard by a bunch of French sailors who realized he was British. Yes, I chuckled. I couldn't help myself. I'm sure Smith didn't find it so funny. By the time the man was 25 he'd had more wild adventures than even Kipling could dream up. And what do our poor misinformed children learn about him? That he fell in love with Pocahontas, a strangely forward-thinking tree-hugger. Hmm. Like I said, the man's been gypped.

Do yourself a huge favor and pick this book up from wherever you can find it and read it to your children or let them read it to themselves. It is awesome.

John Smith (Junior World Explorers): Charles P. Graves. Available in Utah from the Davis County Library system.