Unpuzzling Your Past: The Best-Selling Basic Guide to Genealogy

by Emily Anne Croom

Describes methods for conducting genealogical research and explains how to trace the history of a family through the use of living sources and public records.

Genres: Reference, Nonfiction, History, Historical

278 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

Reviews

[Mark Oconnor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very general/generic advice on how to get started in the field of genealogy which is not what I was looking for. 99% of the content in this book is stuff I already know, or that could easily be discovered in about 4 seconds doing a google search or some such, so nothing too insightful or helpful. I checked out some of her other books and was equally unimpressed. It seems there is a huge gap in genealogies books between this sort of basic primer that tells you obvious things like "go and ask your grandparents where they were born", and excessively technical tomes on deciphering courthouse records, church records, or parish records from various regions of the world. It would be quite a service if a knowledgeable author was able to bridge this gap with a useful guide. I guess I will continue searching and/or waiting for that book to be written.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good place to start if you are just starting your journey into family history. If, like me, you’ve been studying genealogy for a while, then you can probably skip this one. It only took me this long to read it because I was so bored reading things that I already know how to do. I would also recommend reading the most recent edition. This edition (4th edition published in 2001) barely mentions online sources because they simply weren’t that useful when it was written. But now, that’s where you can find an array of sources to help you.

Reading this book was helpful in the sense that I can now say that I actually read a book about genealogy. But in terms of information, this book is a resource for the true beginner.

[Lauren · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m trying to keep my genealogical knowledge up to date but this edition is from 2001. The most recent is a 2010. I question how helpful this book is on methodology.

[Leslie Hickman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was disappointed! It started off good listing different ways to search. However, after listing "interviewing" relatives and neighbors & such....giving over 95% further information on a variety of interview questions and how to conduct those interviews, even after stating that many of avenues to be nearly impossible on some categories they kept harping on it! (even mentioned you could be the older generation but needed to interview complete strangers & family members that were too young to know anything) I nearly laughed when they used the assumption that everyone was from a small town that actually everyone knows their neighbors & one could just start knocking on doors and find out things from everyone on town, even those who just moved to town. Unrealistic & unfortunately put all their " eggs in one basket" trying to obtain "stories" instead of facts. When they gave all these examples of handwriting they showed all these examples of what they looked like but not what they were...so you don't know. It's as if they just showed their family findings over and over because they have no clue themselves what they say!

Only thing redeeming in this book is the appendix of charts & worksheets on gathering data.

[Peggy · Rating 5 out of 5]

4th Edition, Published 2010. This book for beginning geneaologists is full of great ideas and information. I will use Croom's idea of making chronological profiles for each family member, and I will use some of her family history questions (sorted by decade) to learn more about my grandparents. I called my Mother today and learned my Grandparents had a Hudson sedan when they moved to New York in 1942 and my Grandmother used to bake "Crazy Cake."

Content is clear and to the point. The book does not contain information about online searching or content of databases like ancestry.com or Family Search.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read an earlier edition of this book rather than the one listed at this page. The earlier edition was excellent and I xeroxed many pages before returning it to the library - some of the blank charts provided in the appendices, as well as some of the lists of resources and some other specific pages. After reading it, I would gladly pay for the current edition of the book. I think both newbies and intermediate genealogists would find much of use in this book, and that even highly experienced genealogists might come away with new ideas.

[AdultNonFiction Teton County Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lynn 929.1 Croom
Emily Croom books are all easy to read and provides strategies for finding your ancestors. Her ideas are practical and basic. For example, Chapter 16 is Read it Right: Handwriting of the Past. Is that a S or an I? Reproducible copies of worksheets, census, and forms are provided.

[Linda Hartlaub · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good beginning to early intermediate book for genealogy research. Lots of information, ideas to further your search and forms to help you keep track of your research. It could use a more online references. A better place for her forms is in the Unpuzzling Your Past Workbook.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great resource for all genealogists.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

My local library recommended this book as a good way to get started with the basics of geneology. I agree with that assesment.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is helpful to beginning genealogists, but some of the material is now outdated.