“United States History—Modern America—California Edition” 2008

 by Prentice Hall

1.  On p. 3 is a photo captioned “Three-cornered hat worn by Patriots during the American Revolution”.  This is preposterous.  This style of hat was worn by many persons regardless of their political persuasion.  The hat was in no way a type of uniform for “Patriots”.

2.  On p. 4 is the statement, “Most scientists believe that the first inhabitants of the Americas migrated from the northeastern coast of Asia between 40,000 and 15,000 years ago.” There is no way to know what “most scientists believe” about this subject or any other.  Beliefs are not facts.  The wide range of years from 40,000 to 15,000 years ago makes everything else suspect.  Has anybody actually identified who were “the first inhabitants of the Americas”?

3.  On p. 4 is the statement, “By 1492, the American Indians spoke at least 375 distinct languages.”  It’s hard to believe that anyone actually spoke 375 distinct languages.  Maybe the authors meant, “In 1492 at least 375 distinct languages were spoken on the American continents.”  But then again, who was there to count the languages?

4.  On p. 5 is the statement, “All [Indian] members of a clan had a common ancestor and identified with the spirit of a powerful animal.  …  Many American Indian cultures shared similar religious beliefs.  They believed that powerful spiritual forces were part of nature.  Some Indians became shamans, who conducted rituals to seek benefits from spirit beings.”  This is preposterous and false.  How could all 375 distinct language groups—who knew almost nothing about any others—develop any such farfetched vague “religious” beliefs?  Are Aztecs the same as Apaches?  Are the Iroquois the same as the Navajos?  These peoples did not think so, and would find it truly offensive.  It sounds like the book’s authors have been watching too many B-movies.

5.  On p. 5 is a map titled “Native American Culture Regions of North America in About 1450”.  Who was recording this extensive information across the continent in 1450?  Remember, Columbus showed up in 1492 in the Caribbean.  Further, it is unclear how any “culture region” is defined?  Within each of the colored areas are numerous, different cultures.  Do all these tribes have the same culture?

6.  On p. 6 is the statement “While Native American cultures thrived in the Americas [around the 14^th and 15^th century], life in Europe was changing rapidly.”  Which Indian cultures were “thriving” and how can we know?  Many were decimated or wiped out by rivals.  There is no such thing as “life in Europe” with its hundreds of ethnic groups.

7.  On p. 6 is the statement about West African kingdoms, “Highly civilized and densely populated, African kingdoms like Songhai and Benin….”  Most of West Africa is inhospitable and could hardly be characterized as “densely populated” in common parlance.  Actually no facts on population are given.

8.  On p. 6 is a discussion of the slave trade from West Africa, which fails to mention that the West Africans were the ones who provided the 11 million captives.  Actually, this would be a terrific historical study about who got very rich in West Africa.