Rate this book

Oregon Trail: The Road To Destiny (2011)

by Frank M. Young(Favorite Author)

3.37 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1570616493 (ISBN13: 9781570616495)

languge

English

genre

Historical Fiction

publisher

Sasquatch Books

review 1: I had really high hopes for this book but even after finishing the book and thinking about it for a few days, I'm not sure how I feel about it. The book tells the tale of Rebecca Weston, an eleven-year-old girl whose family decides to take the journey West in 1848. It was SO reminiscent of the video game- fording rivers, hunting buffalo, trading with Indians....I just worry that this was politically incorrect. Back when I played that video game, it was okay to portray Native Americans in headdresses who traded with the settlers. But with No Doubt's recent music video that was pulled for being offensive to Native Americans, I am feeling very paranoid about political correctness with Native Americans. This book portrays Native Americans as kind people (who occasionally wear ... morefeathers in their hair) who protect the environment and want to trade with settlers moving West. Is that an incorrect historical assessment? I'm not sure- perhaps my own ignorance of the truth of that time is guiding the way I feel about the book.Aside from that, the book is a little intense. There is a body floating upside-down in the river, a man carrying a dead body away from a fire, and her brother unceremoniously dies from cholera. The family is seen hugging, and within a few pages, when they've made it to the West, they're all ecstatic. It's a bizarre juxtaposition of emotions.The drawings are not my favorite- a little crudely done at times (though I love the oxen expressions)- the mother looks downright awful at times, and not just because it's a hard journey. I did not emotionally connect to these characters- to the Weston family. I wanted to. I wanted to cheer for them as they journeyed and cry for them in their loss- but it seemed too far removed.And then, the book just skips forward 1/3 of the journey West because "Rebecca lost her pencil and couldn't keep her journal"... which... eh... Okay, perhaps the author is trying to add that authenticity in there, or perhaps the penciler decided they were done drawing this graphic novel.All in all, I have mixed feelings about the book. Perhaps kids would like it for the adventure. Perhaps I'm being too paranoid about political correctness. But I just remember this fabulous game- and then when I hear about the Oregon Trail I got all excited- perhaps I was bound to be let down no matter what the book was.
review 2: Fictional comics account of a family's wagon trip along the Oregon Trail that has lots of great non-fiction information as well. Growing up in Utah one hears a lot pioneer stories, but I had never seen anything like the cross section of a packed wagon feature here. I like it a lot now, but 5th grade me would have loved that drawing so much. I did have "Pioneer Children Sang as They Walked" stuck in my head for weeks after reading this, but Young and Lasky can't really be blamed for that. less

Download links for: Oregon Trail: The Road to Destiny

Advertising