How accurate are the biographies from d'Aulaire?

[LlamaMama]

I recently discovered the biographies by Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire. So far, I've read "Columbus" to my five year old and she's read "Abraham Lincoln" and "George Washington" on her own.

I'm wondering how much to trust these books.

[chiguirre]

IMHO, not too much. I remember the Columbus books had the flat earth myth in it. Really, sailors and scholars knew the world was round. Columbus thought it was much smaller than it actually is and he would have been lost at sea if there wasn't a continent in the middle of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

That doesn't mean we won't read the D'Aulaire books. They're more the "mythology" of great people rather than the unvarnished truth, but there will be plenty of time to point out the blemishes of historical figures later when my kids are more mature and can understand the nuances. For K-2, D'Aulaire strikes the right chord for me, but YMMV. You can also google anything that sounds fishy or read an encyclopedia entry before the book just for your own information and correct what you want to correct.

[mcconnellboys]

They're literature, not history books.

[Joyful]

I'm so glad to read this thread!
When I did a search of our library's catalogue, I saw those
books, and was thinking of borrowing them for my kids to
read thinking that they might be good biographies...

[Karenciavo]

That doesn't mean we won't read the D'Aulaire books. For K-2, D'Aulaire strikes the right chord for me, but YMMV. You can also google anything that sounds fishy or read an encyclopedia entry before the book just for your own information and correct what you want to correct.

I agree with Julianna. Yes, they are romanticized, but my ds6 reads them aloud to me and we discuss. We read Buffalo Bill this week and were able to discuss the myth of the wild west, cowboys, etc.

[Donna T.]

They're literature, not history books.

I agree. I have all of them and we enjoy them. But, I'm skeptical. I doubt some of the content but they are nice stories and the pictures are great.

[LlamaMama]

Thanks for the feedback. The books are engaging and colorful, but I wanted to check with the WTM history buffs regarding the content. You're right that we have many years get all the details correct. For now, I think we'll continue to read them to give an interesting introduction to those famous people. I think the Beautiful Feet company also has one on Pocahontas.

[nestof3]

I got rid of the George Washington one. I couldn't stand how it made the slaves seem so cheery and how the story made it seem so right. If my children are old enough to learn about George Washington, they're old enough to know about slavery.

While they're fun to read, they are very euro-centric. We're just so big on history and thinking through it that my nine year old already balks at sugar-coated history.

[LlamaMama]

I haven't looked through that one yet (The George Washington one). I normally don't let my daughter read through things that I haven't scanned first, but I did this time. Thanks for the heads-up.

[mcconnellboys]

This topic has come up with the Genevieve Foster books for older kids, too. Her books are lit, not history.

[~Jenn~]

100% historically accurate..maybe not so much. But I just can't resist those yummy illustrations!:)

[DB in NJ]

Thanks for the feedback. The books are engaging and colorful, but I wanted to check with the WTM history buffs regarding the content. You're right that we have many years get all the details correct. For now, I think we'll continue to read them to give an interesting introduction to those famous people. I think the Beautiful Feet company also has one on Pocahontas.


Sounds like a good plan. btw, the illustration of Lincoln's house (the interior) is really spot on! We were standing in the man's hallway, looking into his living room, and had the book open to the page that illustrated the same scene. They did a good job!

[Reya]

It's very elementary school history, but I gave up about a year ago on not giving into history myths! :-)

[TaraTheLiberator]

You're right that we have many years get all the details correct.

Ime, when kids are exposed to incorrect information, it tends to stick with them even if/when it is corrected at a later date, so I try to avoid the misinformation in the first place.

Tara