Pedro's Journal

by Pam Conrad, Peter Koeppen (Illustrator)

Pedro de Salcedo could not have known what adventures lay ahead! His incredible voyage as ship's boy aboard Christopher Columbus' Santa Maria would bring both danger and excitement. Pedro captured his experience between the pages of a journal. If he did not return alive perhaps someone, someday would find it and learn of his incredible journey to the New World.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, American History, Childrens, School, Middle Grade, Historical

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Pam Conrad (1947-1996) was an author for children. Her book Our House: Stories of Levittown was a Newbery Medal finalist.

Ms. Conrad was born in New York City and graduated from the New School for Social Research.

Reviews

[Emco · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historical fiction/Children's Literature
Based on a child who actually did travel on the Santa Maria with Columbus. Also clearly based on Columbus's shockingly stupid journal entries.I like reading this with my students while we are learning about Columbus and other European explorers. It describes what the journey might have been like. It gives a good overall view of Columbus's personality, specifically of his pride, his greed, and his ignorance of the culture(s) that he was invading. Sets the stage nicely for future discussions of how America's success began and grew by ignoring, invading, and exploiting already existing cultures. My classroom is a happy place, I swear.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't like this book. For one, it was rather dull. The excitement and adventure never seemed to jump off the page. My boys were mildly interested but it was not engaging to them.

This book also has a decidedly anti-Columbus feel to it. Basically, he has no redeeming qualities and is an idiot. I constantly struggle with this - most men have both good and bad in them. History is full of good and bad things. I like books which show a balance. This did not.

And thirdly, we didn't really learn anything we didn't already know. So we were bored, surrounded by negativity and didn't learn anything. Hmm...not really worth my time or that of my kids. I should have pre-read it like I usually do with all our books. This wouldn't have made the cut.

[Chessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The kids say 5 stars, and I say 4. This was a nice companion read to our historical journey of exploration from Europe to the Americas. Told from the perspective of Pedro, the Ship's Boy, it gives kids a good idea of what a sea voyage of that kind might have been like for a kid. I appreciated that it did not shy away from the darker side of the exploration, i.e., Pedro is super uncomfortable how Columbus and his men treat the natives in their travels.

[Eduardo]

PERSONAL RESPONSE
I think this book was sad because it talks about bad experiences. It is a historical book but it is also fiction because it is based on a real event. I did not really enjoy this book because Columbus was so mean to the people.

PLOT
In the beginning of the book, Columbus and his men were trying to find a new route to India. They decided to take Pedro with them because they thought he was young but very smart. Pedro knew how to read and write, so they thought he might be helpful on the trip. They went on the trip with three boats. They were called the Pinta, Santa Maria and Nina. Columbus and Pedro were on the Santa Maria. They started in August and finished in December. They travelled for a long time, so when they saw land, they stopped because they didn't have any food left. They saw the natives and Columbus called them Indians, because he thought they had landed in India. The Indians thought Columbus and his men were some type of God. The Indians welcomed them onto their lands. The Indians fed them, gave them water and had a big ceremony for them.

CHARACTERIZATION
The main characters are Pedro and Christopher Columbus. Pedro is a very honest guy. He left his mom at home to go on the trip with Christopher Columbus because he thought Christopher Columbus was a good man. Pedro discovered Columbus wasn't such a good man because he didn't do things for the right reasons. Throughout the trip, Pedro kept a journal of what happened every day on the trip. Columbus was very interested in finding gold to bring back home. He was using the natives to find gold. Columbus was greedy, dishonest and a liar.

IMPACTS OF SETTING
This book took place on the ocean and the Native American's land. It took place in August, 1492 to February, 1493.

THEME
The overall theme of the book is to be thankful for what you have not to be greedy when you don't have enough. It shows you how when you are greedy, you will lose your friends.

RECOMMENDATION
I recommend this book to people who like to travel on the ocean and who love historical fiction books. I recommend this book to middle school boys. I recommend this book to people who are wondering how Christopher Columbus discovered America.

[Esther Moss]

Pedro's Journal
Reading level: 5.5 (grade level) 1030 (lexile) Q (guided reading)
Book interest level: This is a fascinating story but has very challenging vocabulary and a tricky-to-follow plot. I would assign it for individual reading for advanced 3rd graders and older, or read aloud to a whole 3rd grade (or older) class.

Summary: Pedro, a young boy from Spain, gets the chance of a lifetime when he is hired by Christopher Colombus to work as a record-keeper on one of his ships on the first Spanish expedition to what we now know to be Puerto Rico. Along the way, Pedro's ship journal tells of the adventures of the ship's crew and the interesting relationship between the Spaniards and the indigenous people they meet on the island.

Book genre: Historical fiction. This book is a perfect example of a fictional character telling a story about something that really happened. I read this group with an advanced literature circle of 3rd graders and really enjoyed helping them understand that the events in the book are real, although Pedro didn't actually exist.

Mentor writing trait: presentation and voice- I love how the book is written in a first person voice and presented as a journal. The "chapters" are dated as if they were entries in a ship's log and the illustrations are like sketches drawn by Pedro.

Integration: I had great success reading this with an advanced literature circle. I would do that again or perhaps read it to the whole class as a read-aloud. Students seemed genuinely captivated by the exciting plot and really relate to the character of Pedro.

[Lydia Goddard · Rating 4 out of 5]

First book of our new school year - studying American History. We loved this book. I learned tons about Christopher Columbus that I had not learned in school. Love that it's written as a ship boy's journal. Good way to learn what the voyage was like when Columbus first discovered America, and how he proceeded to treat the Native Americans.

[Kerri · Rating 3 out of 5]

We read this book for a read-aloud in our homeschool. It was interesting, and brings kids into the experience of Columbus' trip to the New World much better than a history textbook.

[=☆Silver-Lining☆= · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pedro's Journal was kind of good but I didn't like how almost everyone was mean and greedy. However, I liked how it was like a diary and there were poems. Some of the characters were Pedro, Christopher Columbus, and some Native Americans. Columbus was planning to go to India for gold, but they went to the Caribbean Islands. That book was interesting to read.

[Eduardo Ventura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Personal Response

I liked this book, but it was not as good as I thought it would be. I enjoyed learning some real facts about Cristobal Columbus. I do not think it was very good because of the ending.

Plot

The story starts with Pedro being recruited to the crew of the Santa Maria with 40 other men. Pedro was recruited, because he could read and write. The Santa Maria, the Niña, and the Pinta sailed from Spain on an unknown route to India. Pedro and the other members of the crew have lots of problems on the journey. They doubled the time and nautical miles that any other boat had ever registered. After more than two months of traveling, they finally touched land. As Pedro's journals describe, Cristobal Columbus went crazy naming everything he found. Cristobal called the new people (natives of the area) Indians, because he thought they were in India. On their way back to Spain, the Santa Maria was in a horrible storm. The tempest seemed to never end so they put their information in a barrel. Pedro does the same with his letters hoping that someone would find the barrel.

Characterization

Pedro de Salcedo is a Spanish boy. He has the opportunity to join a historical voyage in 1492, because he can read and write. Pedro is always talking about his mother in his journals, this is something that connects with the reader. I like how optimist he is over this scary journey.

Impacts of setting

This story starts in a port, in the old Spain of 1492. It also takes place over the Atlantic ocean and today's Bahamas islands. The story is set in the years 1492 to 1493.

Recommendation

I recommend this book to kids 9 to 12 years old of any gender, because it is a good book to start challenging their reading. This is a good historical fiction book; so I will also recommend it to anybody of any gender that enjoys short books and historical fiction.

[Diego · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pedro's Journal, by Pam Conrad, tells the tale of Pedro of Salcedo, a ship's boy aboard the Santa Maria who accompanies Christopher Columbus on the journey to find the new world.The Pedro's story is told in journal entries about the trip across the Atlantic and the exploration of the Indies and the World. Pedro sees Columbus as hot tempered. He describes the native people as peaceful and unfairly terrorized by the Spanish.



I like the book this book is a kind of mystery book because the book is about kid who is really interested in being on the pirate ship with Columbus.


I like this book because is a good story about Pedro is a young man who wants to be on the Columbus boat because he wants to know how is a trip and he got a journal where he can write some about what happen in the trip.


This book give me a idea to how to do a journal of my life or something what I like to do like my favorites memories or something else no matter what , or also a good journal of school but no matter what is a good idea .


I would recommend this book to all students because it is a good story of a journal of Pedro he did a good job . I liked this book because the topic was interesting to me .

[Margaret Chind · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, we really enjoyed this book. We read it aloud as recommended by Bookshark Level 3 Introduction to American History, year 1. This was the first introduction for my daughters to see a diary format of a book and my oldest became a big fan of the type of storytelling. We were also intrigued to finally read a little proof that Columbus was not a perfect man.

[Ashleigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

My kids loved this one. Great intro to Columbus's voyages.

[Joey Oborne · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is this boy and he is one the volage with Columbus and he has a Journal and writes down what happens, so it is Columbus when he finds the new world.

[Kayla Watkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really Good History Book!

[Laura (Book Scrounger) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though it ends rather abruptly, this was a neat attempt to see Columbus's voyage from the perspective of a cabin boy, who was apparently a real person. It's a short read, but captures some of the possible apprehension and danger of the voyage, and the curiosity of coming into contact with other cultures. It's mostly written as a summary, so none of the characters are filled out much, but it does well as a child's fictionalized introduction to the historic voyage.

[Garret Bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is very adventurous! I liked it because it was about the sea and I like the sea! The main character was named Pedro. He was a ship's boy on Christopher Columbus's first voyage. He left his mother in Spain. He sailed with Christopher Columbus to the Caribbean Islands and he found Native Americans. They were very nice at first. Then they sail to Spain at the end of the book.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

My children and I really enjoyed this book while studying the history of Christopher Columbus. It was really interesting to follow along on Pedro’s journey and get a new perspective on all that took place on their voyage across the sea.

[Bethany B · Rating 4 out of 5]

F age 9 K age 11 both gave four stars. Fun quick read.

[Trina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read, bringing to life Columbus' voyage

[Adaline Simpson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good book for smaller children.
More for like children from ages 6 to 9.
If your looking for a book to read to toddlers for some easy history they will understand, this book would be great!
It's mainly about all the hard times Christopher Columbus went through trying to find Asia and India, but found America.

[Jeani Gillespie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a historical fiction account of Columbus's first journey told by his cabin boy. It really is pretty authentic and factual for HF. It relies on Columbus' Journal accounts and shows more than what one typically learns about him in America since we seem bent on making him a hero. I appreciated the factual accounts of his greed, selfishness, and inhumane treatment of the natives. Although the account does not show the true evil of how many Taino Columbus killed or the various horrid ways he and his people went about it, the audience is middle elementary and it is not necessary to do so and still be honest in showing the truth of this voyage and colonization.
The writing is a bit dry, but you can still get into the character. I do not believe the ship boy has a politically correct attitude, nor do I believe his emotions are contrived. If you were witnessing a very unlikeable leader hurting others and being dishonest and greedy- I think you would react MORE vehemently than the boy did. His character is believable. He wants to like and look up to Columbus, but in the end, the whole experience is just off putting for him. Much more interesting than dry textbook information and a good way to get to know the real Columbus.

[Evan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book, found in a box at school, is an interesting take on telling the Columbus story, as it's a piece of historical fiction whose narrator is the ship boy on the Santa María, the ship Columbus sailed on during his first voyage across the Atlantic Ocean. It is fairly true to history, according to the author's note by Pam Conrad, but is able to take certain liberties in telling the story from the perspective of a child rather than some stodgy, grown up historian. I think most children would prefer learning about the history concerning Columbus and his famous voyage from such a more humanized text rather than the typical picture books about him. It is a very short read and written on what is probably a 3rd or 4th grade reading level. I'd suggest it to teachers as it begins to tell the story from more than just a European/Western perspective in the sense that Pedro is able to empathize with the Native Americans and their plight, apparent from the first encounter between the Spanish and those they 'discover' on Hispaniola. But it doesn't delve very far into the dark side of this story, nor the far reaching consequences for the Native Americans and world history.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good fast read for readers 9 to 12. I read this book with Dorathy and Christopher, and then we had a family "book club discussion" on it. It was a good read for kids because it's told from the perspective of a young boy. It makes for a good discussion, because it shows the inhumane treatment of the natives. A child really feels the injustice of it all. It portrays the situation without being to graphic for young readers. You really end this book with conflicting feelings towards Columbus himself. He was a great man who had done a great thing, but he was also a pompous and vain man who saw others as less than himself.

[Zender · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think that this book is really, a kind of mystery book because you will feel like what will happen next like, will they survive? or you will think questions like that. The book is about a kid who is really interestead in being on the piarate ship with columbus. Pedro is a guy who can read not like others because in the past time onley some people get to go to school. So Pedro is a lucky one. If he is not in with Columbus and the other crew then he would not be able to read maps and stuff. I think this book is fun to read because it has fun parts that entertain like, it will talk about storms mysterys and waves and scary moments.

[Sarah Balmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historical Fiction
Grades:3-8
This journal style story was captivating and kept the reader interested even in a subject many children do not like; history. This is a perfect book to read when learning about Columbus and his ships, as well as just for fun. As great as this book was, it was not my favorite, based on some of the dry language, and all of the hardships that are recorded in this book, but that may have been based on my personal preference of genre. I did enjoy this quick read, as well as the functionality that this book may be used for in the classroom.

[Alison Parker · Rating 3 out of 5]

We read this as part of our homeschool and it opened up a lot of conversations about Christopher Columbus and his "discovery". We also discussed maps, sailing, navigation and early civilizations. It was a quick & easy read and I liked the journal entry format. It is based on journals and ships logs kept during the voyage. We are going to follow-up with Encounter, to offer a perspective of the Taino Indians that Columbus encountered when he arrived on native land.

[Mehgan Horne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this with my children (8 and 10) as part of their homeschool history curriculum. While it is historical fiction, it gives insight into Columbus's travels through the eyes of a child who traveled with him. It opened up discussions on the treatment of the natives that my children had never considered before. Overall, it was an enjoyable, thought-provoking read.

[Jane-Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this to my kids for school - I really liked that it didn't sugarcoat how terribly Columbus treated the natives of the land he "discovered" and was able to have a good conversation with my children about it. Great book for early readers.

[Kali Hilliard · Rating 4 out of 5]

3-6; Historical Fiction; This book is phenomenal for teaching the voyage of Christopher Columbus! It provides a perfect insight of his journey. It allows the reader to feel as though the are there on the ship.

[Jeanette De Jesus · Rating 4 out of 5]

For those of you who are teachers, its a great book to use as a read aloud in order to capture your student's attention and teach 7th grade social studies in an interesting way.