Raleighs Page Alan Armstrong by Alan Armstrong 9780375890789, 0375890785 instant download after payment.

ANDREW HAS grown up near the Plymouth docks hearing the sailors talk about America. Knowing that Andrew's heart is set on going to the new world, his father sends him up to London to serve as page in the house of Walter Raleigh. In Queen Elizabeth's court, Raleigh's the strongest voice in favor of fighting with Spain for a position in the New World, and everyone knows that it's just a matter of time before Her Majesty agrees to an expedition. Can Andrew prove himself fit to go on an expedition to the New World?

Meticulously researched and brilliantly crafted, combining fictional characters with historical, Andrew's tale offers up a vivid look at the cloakand- dagger politics of the time and a genuine feel for what it must have been like for the first Europeans to set foot on the beautiful, bountiful, savage shores of America.

From the Hardcover edition.

Armstrong, author of the Newbery Honor Book Whittington (2005), weaves a richly detailed historical narrative featuring 11-year-old Andrew Saintleger, who leaves his home in Devon to become a page to Walter Raleigh. Within two years, he has served Raleigh by sailing to France as a spy, helping to steal an important map, and traveling to Virginia, where he befriends an Indian boy. Andrew goes back to England more experienced, more mature, and eager to return to America. Armstrong's research is evident in the many period details that bring the narrative to life and in the appended author's note, where he lists sources and provides a few "specific notes." Readers may be disappointed not to find any reference there to a curious scene in which Queen Elizabeth I, dancing with her courtiers, summons her maids to remove her jacket and blouse and continues the dance with her "small breasts bared." Historical figures such as Raleigh, Thomas Harriot, and Manteo mix with fictional characters in an adventure that makes for compelling reading. Illustrated with expressive pencil drawings. Phelan, Carolyn

Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews, September 1, 2007:
"It's an absorbing historical adventure from an emerging master."

“[This book] will have adventure lovers at the edge of their seats, and they’ll realize that America’s history is anything but boring.”*—School Library Journal

“Historical figures such as Raleigh, Thomas Harriot, and Manteo mix with fictional characters in an adventure that makes for compelling reading.”
—Booklist*