Squanto's Journey: The Story of the First Thanksgiving

As Bruchac - a prolific children's author of Abenaki ancestry - notes in his afterword to this excellent picture-book, the Thanksgiving story is seldom told from the Native American perspective, and is usually marred by gross historical and cultural inaccuracies. That these untruths are spoon-fed to our children as part of our national mythology, makes them all-the-more harmful.

Squanto's Journey is an excellent corrective for some of the misinformation currently available, telling of the life story of Tisquantum (Squanto), a member of the Patuxet nation, whose role in befriending the English settlers of Plymouth would prove so fateful. Young readers will perhaps be surprised to learn that Squanto was kidnapped by an English captain, show more sold as a slave to the Spanish, and that, when he was finally able to return to his homeland, discovered most of his people had been killed by diseases brought to the Americas by European settlers.

Despite this horrifying history, Squanto believed in the possibilities of peace and friendship, and when the settlers at Plymouth needed his help, he gave it freely. This moving story of a true pniese, or man of honor, who never allowed suffering to embitter him, is matter-of-fact and realistic, without being brutal. Accompanied by Greg Shed's gorgeous gouache illustrations, Squanto's Journey should be required reading for anyone who thinks that being thankful requires forgetting the truth... show less

This poetic narrative is told from Squanto's perspective. One of the Patuxet (Wampanoag) people, Squanto was born in 1590, and in 1614 was kidnapped and taken to Spain. He returned on an English ship, only to learn that few people from his village had survived a sickness brought by white traders. ("My wife, my children, my parents, and all those closest to me were gone. I will not say their names now. I will speak them again when my own feet climb the highest mountain and I walk the Road of Stars to greet them"). Squanto then worked with both English settlers and Native peoples (Nemasket, Pokanoket, Narragansett) as a translator and sometimes a peacemaker. Ultimately, he does describe "the first Thanksgiving," the Mayflower pilgrims' show more first successful harvest in 1621. Shed's full-bleed illustrations are soft and luminous. show less

This book does a great job of battling the opposing long perception of Native Americans as savages during this time. Even when displaying anger it was done and explained with reason. For example, Epanow was captured by Europeans and enslaved, as a result, he despised the English language. The illustration is done so in such a way that you see Native Americans appearing very peaceful and insightful guiding the Europeans through foreign lands.

The story of Squanto (Tisquantum), a member of the Wampanoag people who was captured by the English and sold as a slave in Spain. Eventually he made it back to his home (in present day Massachusetts) and was present during the three-day feasting shared by members of the Wampanoag and English settlers in 1621 that eventually became part of the basis for the American mythology around Thanksgiving as a holiday. An important story nicely told and beautifully illustrated.

This is a great book to read during the month of November before students have Thanksgiving break. It's informative, historical, and the illustrations capture the book very well. I really like how its told from the Native American's point of view; it's not often you see that side. I can really connect with the characters and so will students. The book is very well written and I can feel like these are things the Native Americans would say. I get a clear visualization of the characters and setting. I'd read this to a second grade class, most likely.

The book tells the story of the first Thanksgiving from the perspective of Squanto; I'm not a great student of history and so Iearned a lot that I didn't know from this primary-level book. I didn't know that there was a history of Europeans capturing the native population to take back to various European countries and sell as slaves. I didn't know that Squanto had been such a slave - I barely knew anything from the Native American perspective of this story.

I think in schools today they attempt to be more inclusive and honest about this information, but when I was in elementary school it was the pretty standard pilgrims escaping religious persecution and learning how to plant crops from the Indians story.

I'm really glad I read this show more book; I learned a lot and felt a lot of empathy for Squanto and the native people. I also really loved the artwork - there is a gorgeous, luminous quality to the paintings. Lovely. show less

Author Joseph Bruchac, a descendant of Native Americans, wrote this story with historic detail. The story is told from Squanto's point of view. We first learn that Squanto was taken by Captain Thomas Hunt (along with other Native Americans) across the ocean to Spain, and enslaved, until a group of Brothers freed them. Squanto then went to England, studied English, and later sailed back to his homeland, only to find his family had died from disease. Over a long period of time, Squanto worked as a negotiator and interpreter between the English and other Native Americans, and did so successfully. This story is not your run-of-the-mill Thanksgiving elementary school story. I remember learning that Squanto taught the Pilgrims how to plant show more corn. He did that, but accomplished so much more. Readers can appreciate this story for that reason; they will learn much more about someone they thought they already knew of. Illustrator Greg Shed created gorgeous artwork for this book. The colors are mostly Earth tones, and the sunlight bares down on the characters, casting shadows on every page. The pictures do not show Squanto in pain or even appearing to struggle, but he is shown as a very calm and strong man. Squanto's peaceful mood radiates from every page. show less