The Mayflower A History From Beginning to End by Hourly History

The Mayflower A History From Beginning to End by Hourly History.

In last two weeks I have collected a large number of books. Out of those, I have picked the book on The Mayflower Ship published by Hourly History.

There is a strong reason to select this book. I am receiving the Hourly History Publication books as free of cost books. I have already talked about them in the case of three titles by them. I have raised some objections against the contents of these books. They are as follows.

1. The publication does not reveal the name of the author. The publication declares that it is written by Hourly History. The search on the Internet has not yielded any result on their identity. This is not acceptable.
2. They are using the term 'History'. But they are mainly publishing biographies. It is a very narrow use of the term of the concept 'History'.
3. They call their work as the history. However, they are not following the basic rules of history. They are not authenticating the source of their information. They are not providing the bibliography and references to authenticate the claim of being called the history.
4. They do not appeal to the concept of Historicism. They do not bring out those questions, trends and change and continuity relations, and the cause and effect relations.
5. There are some more flaws which I will bring out gradually.

The good point about these titles is that they are taking up some difficult aspect of history and provide their version within forty to fifty pages. The contents can be read within one to two hours. They form chapters which give a good pen portrait of the personality or the event.

Now, in the case of their title on The Mayflower, I want to drop two objections. I provide the actual features which neutralize my objections. They are as follows.

They have provided a bibliography.

They have raised the appropriate historic questions about the historic trends, change and continuity and the cause and effect relation.

They have definitely done a good job in the case of this title.

The Good Job:

I am writing these points after a long gap. I had read this book earlier. I had written the above piece just after completing the reading. Now, I am writing about the book, not even looking into the contents at present. I remember two major points.

It is in the first chapter, I am sure about it, that the writer has started the topic as per the craft of history. He has raised the right questions before coming to the actual theme. The questions are about the reasons and effects of the migration. It is E. H. Carr, who has emphasised that history is an interpretation. It is a dialogue between present and past. If you want to know about the reasons and causes of a ship moving to New Lands today, then it is the history which is at work. Therefore, in 2017 you want to talk about something which had taken place in 1620, it is not mere a fashion or act of entertainment that has moved you to undertake that activity. You are seeking an answer for something which is bothering you in 2017 or something which will come up after 2017. The written records are definitely needed for the history. However, those writings of past are not there to be read as they are preserved. You must know the reason for seeking information from that. Now, the author of this title has done that job.

The second good job is to explain the difference between the Pilgrims and Puritans. If you write the history of America, then, you must be sure about the various denominations of the Protestant and Reformation. If you merely mark all of them Protestants, then you fail the job in the field of history. The author of this title know his facts and he is equally successful in narrating them.

Another feature which emerges, and I am ready to accept, that it may be my mere assumption, the author of this title did not write it in one sitting. In between, he gone into some further research and reading. He is seen repeating his arguments in two the chapters. There, it conveys the feeling that he has started from there again.

If one reads the contents of Wikipedia on the Mayflower Ship, one can find more facts and data there. But, mere repetition of the facts is not all the history. It is here, this title scores over the content of the Wikipedia.

It has also taken up the most difficult issue of the American History and that is aboriginals of America. It has not shied away from taking up that question. It is other thing, that till this day, I have not found any good account of the original question. It is really good to see that this author has picked up the points at the right place. He has done all this within the little space of 40 pages.

I am highly impressed. I strongly recommend.

If the publisher happens to read this post, then, I must request him to reveal the names of different authors.

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