The Diary of David K. Leeper: Rushing for Gold (In My Own Words)

Many towering figures are credited with shaping the course of American history. For each of these celebrated lives, there were countless others -- writing the real story of America. In My Own Words introduces young readers to these lesser-known Americans and their stories. This exciting series reveals the tales of four ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances through their personal writings. Readers will be amused by the sly Yankee humor that Revolutionary War soldier Joseph Plumb Martin brings to his stirring account of the war for independence. The thrilling writings of John Wesley Powell -- the first white man to explore the Grand Canyon -- allow readers to sense the profound awe Powell and his crew felt discovering the Canyon's natural wonders, as well as the dangers and hardships they faced daily.

Grade 5-9-During the 19th century, people enjoyed reading published diaries of travelers, adventurers, gunfighters, and others. These first-person accounts provided fascinating information about historical events, semi-exotic places, and day-to-day living conditions. The Roops have taken three of these accounts and edited them for a new generation of readers. Each title contains the most interesting and informative segments from the original piece. Highlighted, unfamiliar words are defined in the margins, and sidebars and boxed sections contain additional background material on people, places, and events. All include color illustrations and maps. These are uniformly good titles, especially appealing in their immediacy. Leeper's diary is filled with details about the hardships of getting to California and the disappointment of not finding a fortune once there; Martin's diary describes the years he was enlisted as a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Young Jemison recounts events from her life before and after she was captured and adopted by members of the Seneca tribe. The Roops have "here and there-revised a sentence in order to make its meaning clear to the modern reader" and the resulting texts are polished, readable, and reliable.
Dona J. Helmer, College Gate School Library, Anchorage, AK
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Reviewed with The Dairy of Mary Jemison.

Gr. 3-6. As editors for the promising In My Own Words series, the Roops organize and prepare the first-person accounts of historical figures and modernize spelling and punctuation to make the writing clear and accessible to young readers. Because each book is short, printed in relatively large type, and illustrated with several attractive watercolor paintings, the result is a series of history books that look appealing, read well, and carry the conviction of original accounts. Page-long sidebars fill in background information that students will need to better understand the times. Based on Jemison's oral account of her story as recorded by James Seaver and published in 1824, the "diary" of Mary Jemison describes her capture by Indians at the age of 12, her adoption by a Seneca family, and her life with the Native Americans. Leeper's story, taken from a book he published in 1894, doesn't read like a diary either, but it is a lively account of his life as forty-niner. Beginning in Indiana, it recounts his adventures crossing the country by wagon train and prospecting for gold in California. Carolyn Phelan
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