I’ll put it to you simply: This is the book you should buy if you have any interest in:
• the various histories of the discovery of America;
• the pre-”Founding Fathers” era;
• tales of First Contact;
• American history or know of someone, say, who will be studying early American history in school. For this is the kind of book I would much rather see in classrooms than most of our standard history texts.
Why? Because Tony Horwitz’s A VOYAGE LONG AND STRANGE: REDISCOVERING THE NEW WORLD is that most remarkable blend of thrilling storytelling, reasoned analysis, first-person experience and thoughtful balance. I know, it doesn’t happen often. Horwitz follows the trail-blazing James W. Loewen (LIES MY TEACHER TOLD ME and LIES ACROSS AMERICA) in busting myths about early American history, but with a slightly less hectoring tone.
He also follows in the path of someone like Bill Bryson, who endeavors to visit the same terrain as his subjects, to walk on the same ground of a John Smith or a Hernando de Soto. The combination is a rich and informative look at early American exploration, why some groups (the Pilgrims) were revered and remembered forever, and why others (the early Spanish and French explorers) seem to be marginalized.
As someone who considers himself well-versed in American history, I was surprised at just how much ground the Spanish conquistadors covered in their initial explorations, how much influence they had on native populations and how twisted are our preconceptions of 15th- and 16th-century America. He compares the historical record with our current understanding and beliefs, matching the facts with how national parks and tourist attractions present those same facts (or torture them into misstatements), and exposes our national confusion about our origins.
This book goes a long way to clearing up that confusion, and does it in such a remarkably balanced way and with such a good nature, that after you’ve thoroughly enjoyed the VOYAGE, you might be surprised at how much you’ve learned as well. Very highly recommended. —Mark Rose
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