Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, 6/7/64
"Gives a great deal of information and is nicely appropriate to the capability of the beginning reader.... The illustrations are plentiful, attractive, and often humorous.... The young reader can get a good picture of daily life in the colonial period."


Book Description
Ann McGovern's gay and informative book gives young readers a vivid picture of life in colonial New England from 1659 to 1730. The drawings help children imagine what it was really like to be a boy or girl in colonial days. The author answers many intriguing questions that children are likely to ask. "What did colonial boys and girls wear?" "What happened if they didn't behave in school?" "What did they do on Sunday?" "Were there special laws about fun? "What happened to people who broke the laws?" This book provides a unique opportunity to enrich the young reader's understanding of American history. 52 entertaining questions and answers about what it was like to live in the New England colonies during the years 1650 - 1730


About the Author
Ann McGovern, the author of more than 55 highly regarded books for children, is excited about the world: the world of history, nature, imagination, and the world of people. Her enthusiasm is the foundation for each word she writes. Her books, which range from fast-paced biographies and fact-filled fun histories to voyages in faraway lands, from playful picture books to retellings of well-known legends and fables, reflect her diverse and many interests. A tireless traveler who has visited every continent, McGovern frequently incorporates her adventures into her books. Playing with Penguins and Swimming with Sea Lions were inspired by expeditions to Antarctica and the Galapagos Islands, respectively. Desert Beneath the Sea resulted from a scientific scuba expedition to the Red Sea, the Caribbean, and the China Sea with Shark Lady Eugenie Clark. And, for Questions and Answers About Sharks, McGovern took notes on her underwater slate with twelve sharks just inches away, after she took part in an underwater shark feeding in Papua New Guinea, where she was scuba diving. But when McGovern visits schools to show slides of her travels and discuss how they provide ideas for her books, she emphasizes that inspiration can come from feelings and close-to-home experiences as well as far-off adventures. McGovern grew up in New York City where she lives today. Her interest in books and writing began at an early age. "As a child, I developed a terrible stutter and never raised my hand in class," she says, "I became a writer to express the feelings that I couldn't speak about and an avid reader as way to escape a sad life." Her formal education ended after her first year at the University of New Mexico, where the only "A" she received was in horseback riding. But McGovern believes her most valuable education has come form her travel experiences and scuba diving expeditions, along with the intensive research she does for her books. McGovern credits her late husband, Martin Scheiner, with introducing her to many of the experiences that have come to influence her writing. "With Marty, I stopped stuttering, I learned to drive, scuba dive, sail, take risks - maybe too many - when lions growled outside our tent in East Africa and the time a shark got too cozy with me in the Great Barrier Reef ," she says. "I plan to write about my journey to the North Pole, when the walrus poked its tusks into our rubber boat. I'll never run out of ideas - or memories!" McGovern makes certain she visits schools and speaks to student as often as she can. "School children give me feedback that's wonderful for my work. Sometimes when I look at a sad, shy face in the audience, I see the lonely child I once was, and I hope that maybe my words can have some influence on a life. Making a difference in children's lives in why I plan to write until I am ninety."


Excerpted from If You Lived in Colonial Times by Ann McGovern, June Otani and Brinton Turkle. Copyright © 1992. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved
Did children have to worry about table manners? When you sit down to eat with your family, you are allowed to talk. If you lived in colonial days, you had to keep quiet. You could not even sit down! You had to stand at the table all through the meal. When supper was good, you could not say so. When supper was bad, you could not say so either. You could not say a word at the table. "Speak not" was a rule to remember. "Sing not, hum not, wriggle not" was one rule. Has your mother ever said to you, "Don't take such big bites. Don't make so much noise when you chew?" There were the same rules in colonial days. All the rules were printed in a book of manners, and you had to learn them all. The book of manners said, "Stuff not thy mouth to fill thy cheeks." "Make not a noise with thy tongue, lips, or breath in the eating or drinking." It was good manners to eat with your fingers. There were spoons. But there were no forks until later colonial days. You used the same knife to cut your meat and to work with wood. In many homes, one big pot was put on the table. Everyone put his spoon or his fingers into the pot to take out his food. Your plate was a wooden board called a trencher. You shared your trencher with a sister or brother. You didn't have your own trencher. That would be too fancy!

FROM THE PUBLISHER

A different time...a different place...What if you were there?