Who's Saying What in Jamestown, Thomas Savage? (review)

Following her well-established format (And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? BCCB 3/74, et al.), Fritz retells the colonial Jamestown saga through the perspective of Thomas Savage, a colonist who arrived with the "First Supply," the wave of settlers who followed those of 1607. Fritz readily admits in her foreword that very little is known about Savage, even his age and occupation, and her work thus falls into the category of historical fiction. Her tone, however, slips frequently between fiction writer and historian, noting from time to time the "maybes" and "probablys" that pepper the account, yet imputing to Savage attitudes one cannot be certain he held. Like Michael Cooper's Jamestown, 1607 (reviewed above), this is strictly an Anglo-American take on events (and an overtly condescending take, at that), and there's little evidence in the text or the source notes that recent interpretations of the archaeological site and material culture have been incorporated to update the story. Quotations are unsourced, which is particularly problematic in light of the fact that some dialogue is clearly fictionalized (only one direct quote can be attributed to Savage) and some has the ring of an actual citation: "If your king has sent me presents," says Powhatan, "I also am a king and this is my land. Your father (Newport) is to come to me, not I to him, nor will I bite at such a bait." Even Comport's pictures disappoint, showing only prepubescent Pocahontas unclothed while other children are overly covered, generally neglecting the Powhatan partially shaved heads noted in both early accounts and illustrations, and sometimes simply mismatching the facing text. While some younger readers may find the unintimidating format a manageable entree into the 400th anniversary observances, all would be well advised to supplement their reading with a visit to the up-to-date websites on Jamestown.