Mayflower

Informative! A little slow to read, but engaging.

This was a good book and gave some good information on the Mayflower, but it went back and forth between England and America more than I expected.

In 1607 Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement in North America. Plymouth would follow thirteen years later. American schoolchildren have learned for centuries about the Pilgrims crossing the Atlantic on the Mayflower and establishing the first settlement in what would become New England. In "The Mayflower," author Rebecca Fraser looks at the founding of the Plymouth Colony thorough the story of Edward Winslow and his family. Fraser discusses the religious, economic, and social reasons why both King James and the Pilgrims wanted the latter to establish a colony on the Eastern Seaboard of North America. The preparations and the voyage across the Atlantic are recalled, and the author notes the traits of the type of the community the Pilgrims founded with the Mayflower Compact that would shape the character of New England. The Pilgrims of course faced numerous hardships in the early years, and their relations with the Native Americans of the region are chronicled. The volume shows how New England before even the midpoint of the seventeenth century already had the sense of being a separate polity from the mother country—independence, if not inevitable, would have strong support in time. The reader also gets a glimpse of the momentous happenings in England during the mid-seventeenth century, as many of the colonists returned either for business or to live. "The Mayflower" follows the story of what became southern New England all the way through King Philip's War in the 1670s, and the book closes by telling how the lives of those related to Winslow and of other important original Plymouth settlers ended. The book would be a rewarding read for anyone interested in American colonial history.

As a member of the Mayflower Society, I was absolutely enthralled with this well written and interesting book by acclaimed British historian Rebecca Fraser. Unlike most books about the Pilgrims, this book begins with the Separatist movement and continues past Plymouth Colony to King Philipp's War so it gives the whole perspective of the Pilgrims' journey in the New World. I learned a great deal about the Pilgrims from reading this book that I hadn't previously known. It's also a wonderful and fascinating read. I've read it twice and I'm sure I'll read it again. I can't recommend this book highly enough!

I loved this book. It puts a different slant on the story of the Mayflower settlers which you don't get in many others. Loved the illustrations within. Definitely readable and very enjoyable. So glad I bought it--and the price wasn't bad either.

A very good and comprehensive account from the Pilgrim's trip from Leiden to the Americas to the decades following the end of the devastating King Philip's War, a war most Americans are not familiar with. Fraser provides a very candid review of relations between the numerous Indian nations and the English colonists, and how relations deteriorated as the colonists took more and more land and cheated Indians, especially as the first generation gave way to the second and third. I appreciated the historical honesty regarding the commercial transformation that overtook, in large measure, the religious purpose of separation from what Puritans considered to be religious corruption and their persecution within the English church. I have often wondered how the Puritans of Massachusetts Bay Colony differed from the Puritans of Plymouth, and Fraser makes it clear. Her writing is clear and sharp, and one criticism is the long sections on England when I began to lose track of people and relationships. But as a descendent of a Mayflower passenger as well as 1630s Puritans, I really enjoyed the book.

Great reference book for family history

It takes some time to sort through and digest the wealth of information found in "The Mayflower". The "story" tends to jump around making it difficult to tie events together and so many names are introduced that it becomes hard to understand their relationship to each other. The writing style often makes you feel like you are reading historical fiction, which in my opinion is not all bad for such a heavy subject. A time line to follow would be helpful, along with a chart of the many people involved and their relationship to each other.

A well written and fascinating insight into the Mayflower and the settlement of New England. By looking at these momentous events through the lens of one particular family (the Winslows) we explore the motivation for emigration to the New World, the kind of settlement which occurred there, and how this developed over time. Because Edward Winslow was such a key player in the development of Plymouth Colony he provides an excellent platform from which to explore wider issues regarding the establishment of the 'godly' colonies of New England, relationships with Native Peoples and also with the changing political scene back in England that had slid into Civil War in the 1640s. A very interesting read indeed.

Good overview of 17c east coast history for non experts

excellent prompt reply. nice book.

Excellent thank you

Great story spoiled by poor writing. Too many cliches, sloppy editing. Reads like a script for a tv documentary not a proper history