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The Matchlock Gun

ジョン・ニューベリー・メダル(ニューベリー賞)

The Matchlock Gun

Walter D. Edmonds

1756年のニューヨーク植民地を舞台に、父の留守中に家を守ろうとする少年と母の一夜を描く。歴史的事件を下敷きに、家族の機転と緊張感が凝縮された短篇的な長編。

歴史小説家族開拓地少年生存

作品情報

ひとつの銃が、家族を守る。

少年ブロムの視点から、家族のために銃を取る一夜を描いた作品。短いページ数の中で、開拓時代の緊迫と、家族が共有する決意が鮮やかに立ち上がる。

書籍情報

出版社
Penguin Young Readers Group
発売日
1998-11-23
ページ数
80ページ
言語
英語
サイズ
12.4 x 0.6 x 19.7 cm
ISBN-13
9780698116801
ISBN-10
9780698116801
価格
1577 JPY
カテゴリ
洋書/Children's Books/Literature & Fiction/Historical Fiction/United States/Colonial

A Newbery Medal Winner In 1756, New York State was still a British colony, and the French and the Indians were constant threats to Edward and his family. When his father was called away to watch for a raid from the north, only Edward was left to protect Mama and little Trudy. His father had shown him how to use the huge matchlock gun, an old Spanish gun that was twice as long as he was, but would Edward be able to handle it if trouble actually came? This classic, first published in 1941, has an updated, kid-friendly format that includes the original black-and-white illustrations.

Walter D. Edmonds was born in 1903 in New York state. His 1936 novel, Drums Along the Mohawk , was a bestseller for two years. His later works received major literary awards, including the National Book Award and the Newbery Medal. He died in 1998.

レビュー

  • A Great story for young boys! A Good find for a used book!

    We ordered this book as a Christmas gift for our son. He really enjoyed the story. The book was used but in very good condition as a former library book. I really prefer these older books. It's more about the story rather than a shiny brand new book. This has stood the test of several generations of young readers since it was published 80 years ago! This book was recommended by Amazon after we searched "Banner in the Sky"...another classic story published in 1954 for young readers. Thanks for a great Christmas present.

  • Another great book by Clyde Bulla!

    I bought this book after reading the Ghost on Windy Hill which was an amazing ghost story! I read The Matchlock Gun with my kids and we all thoroughly enjoyed it! Contrary to what I expected, the story was not weighed down at all by its historical setting. I highly recommend this book and author!

  • True story

    True story, historically detailed and accurate, excellent book for any kids interested in the French and Indian war era.

  • On booklist and grandson enjoyed

    Bought for grandson and he sat down and read.

  • Refreshingly Honest Historic Fiction

    The Matchock Gun is a short story that distills in a few pages what life was like in the Hudson Valley during decades of war between the settlers of that valley and the French Canadians and their Indian allies to the north. It was written by an authority on the region and its history, the same author who wrote Guns Along the Mohawk, which was made into a movie. Any short story written for children has its limitations, but the critics of this one seem to focus on its portrayal, or lack of detailed portrayal, of Indians and slaves in this time period. If the Indians are shown as being vicious it is because they are trying to kill a woman and two children, not because they are Indians. The murder of women and children should be shown as evil and clearly called what it is. And this type of attack happened all across this and other frontiers for centuries. Those who criticize this book need to read some of the diaries of the settlers who witnessed and lost family these attacks. As for slaves, they are mentioned only in passing because they were simply part of the world in which these children grew up in. The children in the story do not condone or glorify slavery in the British colonies and neither does the author. Some criticize the age in which this book was written ( the 1940s) as being backward, but it is our own overly sensitive, quick-to -take -offense generation that refuses to look at life as it is, preferring to see only what is pleasant even at the expense of truth.

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