THE THRIFTY GUIDE TO THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION

Like The Thrifty Guide to Ancient Rome (2017), this 22nd-century publication by Time Corp gives those would-be time travelers wanting to partake of the American Revolution plenty of useful information to prepare for the trip.

There is practical information on appropriate period dress, how to fire a musket, what to do if you are shot by one, and how to survive a stint in the Continental Army. You learn that men started wearing powdered wigs in the 1600s to cover up the lost patches of hair and bloody sores caused by syphilis. Poorly rated accommodations include the HMS Jersey prison ship and Valley Forge. Recommended as interesting lunch companions are African-American patriot Salem Poor, white teenage soldier John Greenwood, enslaved African poet Phillis Wheatley, and Benjamin Franklin. The factual information embedded in the jokey fictional narrative offers some interesting insights into the causes of the American Revolution, notable figures, pivotal battles, and strategies and tactics. Among the historical figures introduced are Benedict Arnold, Alexander Hamilton, John Paul Jones, Henry Knox, Paul Revere and, of course, George Washington.

An entertaining introduction to America’s War for Independence conveyed with enough kid-friendly humor that it may make those who dismiss history as a bore reconsider.