Uncover Exciting History {Schoolhouse Review Crew}

History in our homeschool, or even if just for me, is important. I don’t want to say that other subjects get left by the wayside, but, well, sometimes they do. I’d much prefer to do history than math *wink*. Through the Schoolhouse Review Crew I was given a Kindle ready book, Uncover Exciting History: Revealing America's Christian Heritage in Short, Easy-to-Read Nuggets By Amy Puetz, from Golden Prairie Press.

184 Pages
E-book, retails for $14.95 {sale until September 1st- $11.96}
View Sample Pages
Table of Contents
Also available as an illustrated printed book {retail: $18.95} and an audio book, narrated by Jim Hodges {retail: $25.00}
Amy Puetz is having a Back-to-School sale from August 20-September 1, 2012, that gives 20% off. Now is a great time to get the books you want to add to your homeschool. Check website for current prices.

Here are some of the stories in this book:

• Discover how the U.S. created the Constitution
• Experience the miraculous victory at the Battle of New Orleans
• Explore America’s expansion west
• Uncover one of America’s best weapons used during World War II

There are also four bonus chapters in this book:

• The Hand That Rocks the Cradle: Mothers Who Changed the World Through Their Children
• Medieval Explorer: Marco Polo
• Evangelistic Explorer: David Livingstone
• Daring Explorer of Antarctica: Robert Falcon Scott

The purpose of the book, and others that Amy Puetz writes, is to bring history alive for readers. There are quite a few books available that can tell what happened, but how many pull you into the history and make you want to keep reading; make you want to find out more? That list might be quite a bit shorter!

I chose this book to review because my dd, a 10th grader, is studying the beginning of United States history, and I thought this would be a good supplement to her current studies. The book is for ages 8 and up.

Here are the chapter titles:

1. Christopher Columbus
2. Settling the New World
3. The Lost Colony of Roanoke
4. The Pilgrims’ Legacy
5. The Great Awakening
6. The French and Indian War
7. Freedom Founded
8. Crossing the Delaware
9. The Making of a Republic
10. To Kentucky and Beyond
11. To the Shores of Tripoli
12. The Lewis & Clark Expedition
13. Miracle at New Orleans
14. The Second Great Awakening
15. Daniel Webster: Defender of the Constitution
16. The Mexican War
17. The Oregon Trail
18. The Pony Express
19. A Tale of Two Generals
20. The Spanish American War
21. The Klondike Gold Rush
22. The Great War
23. The Legacy of Alvin York
24. The Great Depression
25. The Navajo Code Talkers

This book is a good resource for getting into a particular point in America’s history, for whetting the appetite to learn more about what happened, who was influential, how it affects our country today. Also, Amy Puetz has strived to include God in these stories. For instance, when writing about the French-Indian War, which she by the way considers to be an “over-looked war”, she states that God, in His providence, “was preparing the men and the circumstances that would eventually lead to the formation of the United States of America. (location 482)”

I have read the book but my dd hasn’t –not yet. Much of what I’d wanted my dd to read, for her history studies, she has already read elsewhere. As we move on, I will be able to use it more with her. Although I personally didn’t see the stories as ‘exciting’, I didn’t find them to be droll and boring like a textbook would present history. We use living books in our home on a regular basis, as our primary sources actually. Now, I didn’t say that I didn’t like the stories! I suppose that I expect a book to be written the way Amy Puetz has written and therefore I have lost that initial wonder when a book isn’t dull. Perhaps. I did find the stories to be quite interesting but I’ll admit that putting “exciting” in the title is catchier than “interesting”.

What I really appreciated about this book was the Digging Deeper included after each chapter. This gives the reader a chance to, well, dig deeper into the subject, learn more about the individuals, and also directs them to other books or resources that will help. She gives suggestions that I only wish I had thought of and am glad that she did.

I also really liked the inclusion of chapter 19 and 25. While Lee and Grant are covered in probably every written work about the Civil War, rarely are their lives presented in the way that Amy has done so in this book. Especially in secular public school, these men are often portrayed as any other man, albeit very courageous and determined. How often are their views about God presented? As for the Code Talkers in chapter 25, I didn’t learn about this aspect of WWII until I was in college.

I really like how Amy Puetz has taken perhaps the highlights of American history and presented it in short stories. They aren’t long and drawn-out, neither are they boring. The Digging Deeper is a great addition to this book. I honestly think that aspect and that it is a living book, is a compelling reason to purchase this for help with studying American history. I would recommend this.

If you wish to keep a secular perspective of American history, this book could still be used, I believe, but much would need to be skipped while reading. Perhaps it would work best as a read-aloud in that case.

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Amy Puetz is a homeschooled graduate. You can read more about her at her website.

Contact:Amy Puetz
P.O. Box 429
Wright, WY 82732

Website: http://www.amypuetz.com
Contact page: http://amypuetz.com/store/index.php?main_page=contact_us
Facebook: http://facebook.com/GoldenPrairiePress

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Some Schoolhouse Review Crew members received this book, while others chose to receive one of the following three books:

You can read the reviews at the Schoolhouse Review Crew website by clicking the image below.

***Disclaimer: I received the above reviewed ebook for free from Amy Puetz, Golden Prairie Press, via the Schoolhouse Review Crew, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions stated are my own. See Disclosure/Policies.***