The Pilgrims of Plimoth

by Marcia Sewall

In a text that mirrors their language and thoughts, Marcia Sewall has masterfully recreated the coming of the pilgrims to the New World, and the daily flow of their days during the first years in the colony they called Plimoth.

Aye, Governor Bradford calls us pilgrims. We are English and England was our home...But our lives were ruled by King James, and for many years it seemed as though our very hearts were in prison in England...
September, 1620, our lives changed. We were seventy menfolk and womenfolk, thirty-two good children, a handful of cocks and hens, and two dogs, gathered together on a dock in Plymouth, England, ready to set sail for America in a small ship called the Mayflower...

After an abundance of prayers and tears we made farewells at dockside and boarded our small ship. Our voyage across the Atlantic Ocean "began with a prosperous wind," but the sea soon became "sharp and violent" and storms howled about us.

When the pilgrims set out for America, they brought with them a dream for the future. Sickness, hardship, and heartache stood in the way of that dream. But the pilgrims worked hard, keeping their dream close to their hearts, until they were finally able to make it come true.

Genres: History, Thanksgiving, Picture Books, Holiday, Childrens, Nonfiction, American History

48 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

It had a good narrative flow to it, while still managing to convey a lot of information about what the Pilgrims’ daily life was like. My kids’ minds were blown at how many chores had to be done in the kids’ daily lives at the time.

[Hayes Read-Alouds · Rating 4 out of 5]

We love how this goes into more detail on the day to day life of the pilgrims in the Plymouth colony.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nonfiction title, full of information related to their early life in Plymouth from house building, to clothing, and the work of women and children. It is not a book about why the pilgrims choose to leave England, move to Holland and eventually settle the new world. I did like the fact there was a glossary of the terms used by the pilgrims, for example: pottage means stew.
However, I object to the fact that the term "Mayflower Compact" was never referenced in the text or glossary or a footnote. The text merely says the men agreed upon a code of conduct and the freeman signed it. I do realize since this title is dedicated to the Pilgrim Village interpreters that the author is trying to stay true to the times, language and terms of the Pilgrims, however, the Mayflower Compact deserves mention within this title by name. The title is detailed enough to include the fact that one of the women gave birth to a stillborn baby so a mention of the Mayflower Compact could have occurred somewhere.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, But not great. Good for social studies. Not good for younger grades, has a lot of text on each page. Images are not that great. Tells about how pilgrims lived in colonial times.

[Jennifer Ritchie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Who is the intended audience for this book? That’s what I’m trying to figure out. From the outside, it looks like a kids’ picture book about the Pilgrims. However, once I started reading it, I quickly realized that it would be much too difficult for young children to read. In fact, it seems unnecessarily obtuse and confusing. I’m a fairly well-read individual, and sometimes I read Shakespeare or the unedited works of the Puritans for my own enjoyment, but I found this book to be confusing. It uses all sorts of unfamiliar terms, like “pompions” for pumpkins, “pipkins” for saucepans, “boulter,” “sachem,” “pottles,”and so on. When I finally got to the end of the book, I discovered that there was a glossary at the back where some of these terms were defined. But by the time I found the glossary, I’d been confused for a while. It didn’t occur to me to stop reading and flip to the back for a glossary, because most kids’ picture books, in my experience, don’t have a glossary. Why not just say pumpkins and saucepans? Or, if the author was just dying to use archaic terminology, why not define the words in the text, or use footnotes at the bottom of the page? Or perhaps place an author’s note at the beginning explaining that the narrative will use old-fashioned words that readers can look up in the glossary at the back? Any of those options could have helped with the confusion and frustration.

Also, why, in the title of the book, did the author spell the name of the Pilgrims’ settlement “Plimoth”? Nowhere in the book is it explained that Plimoth is an old-fashioned spelling for Plymouth, which was used by William Bradford in his writings, in those days when spelling was not standardized. (I had to use Google to find that out.) Sure, it’s true that spelling was pretty fluid in those days. Shakespeare famously spelled his name in many different ways. But most kids’ books about him don’t call him Shakspere or Shackspeare. Why? Because it’s confusing, that’s why.

So, while I checked this out of the library intending to have my third grader read it, I’m now turning it back in. I suppose older students in junior high or high school could read it. But why? If you’re going to read something that’s difficult and confusing, why not just go straight to the source and read Bradford’s “Of Plymouth Plantation”? The illustrations in this book are mediocre and forgettable, so it’s not like students would be missing anything in that regard.

If you need a children’s book about the Pilgrims that children can actually read and enjoy, I recommend Alice Dalgliesh’s book “The Thanksgiving Story.” It covers the Pilgrims in general, not just the Thanksgiving feast, and it is well written and nicely illustrated.

[Kathryn Mcilwraith · Rating 4 out of 5]

My three-sentence review of The Pilgrims of Plimoth by Martha Sewall:
- Written in first person from the perspective of various pilgrims, this book uses vocabulary that the pilgrims themselves would have used, and a glossary is provided on the last page for those of us who do not know what the words "decoction," "pompions," and "sachem" mean.
- If you are planning to read this to younger children, I would recommend breaking it into smaller sections and reading it across several settings.
- You may want to know that this book does not directly talk about the first Thanksgiving; it is primarily about the history and lifestyle of the pilgrims.

[Della Tingle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a library media specialist, I read a lot of children’s books. This is a great children’s book all about the settling of Plimoth. The author also served as illustrator, and the illustrations are beautifully done. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

[I listened to this on audiobook.]

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

AR 5.6

[Lindsay Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the text - more informative than story but told from a 1st person point of view. Illustrations aren’t great.

[Josh Peatfield · Rating 1 out of 5]

Referring to Native Americans, even if written in the parlance of that time, is a no from me, dawg.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely for maybe grades 3-5 for learning and research. Not for young kids.

[Alex at lost Haven Homestead · Rating 4 out of 5]

its a very short and educational read.
it is primarily about the history and lifestyle of the pilgrims.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

The pilgrims of Plimoth by Sewall_ Marcia
Story of the crossing and landing at Plimoth, MA and how they were able to survive with help from the Indians.
Hard land and they were able to cut trees and build houses. Section tells of what chores the men have. also one from women's perspective and one from children and their work.
Glossary of words used.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).

[RLL22016_Elsa Chavez · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book won the Boston Globe Award. The Pilgrims of Plimoth is a book the talks about how the pilgrims settle into America. This book contains great information. However, I did not enjoy reading this book because the texts were too long, and the illustrations are not great. I recommend this book for high school level because this book can be hard to understand for little children.

[Mary Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice, well-illustrated look at life as a Pilgrim. It highlighted the different roles that men, women, and children had.

[Tracy Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a homeschool read aloud for my fourth-grader and first-grader.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty dry, but good content.