March 31, 2014. The Solstice. Russell Shorto.

In 2005, Russell Shorto published a book about New Amsterdam, the Dutch colony that became New York City. Ken read the book when searching his ancestors but although he mentioned the book to me, I did not read it….until now. Just down the hall from our cabin is a wonderful library. The shelves are open so all I must to is to return the book. In the non fiction section, I found “The Island at the Center of the World”, and remembered Ken telling me about it. Of course we all know the story but no one knew much about the Dutch Colony, perhaps because the winner writes the history, and perhaps because the Dutch records were never translated until recently. From the early 17th Century until now, the records sat getting almost ruined. Due to the translations, this story of the Dutch Colony can now be told. Russell Shorto does a pretty good job of bring that period to life. I enjoyed this book. I knew almost nothing about this Dutch colony, which has turned out to be important in the development of the country. The print is small. I read so much using an e reader that I forget about size of the print. Without good light, I could not read the print so was required to read during the daylight. At night, I would read the biography of Queen Elizabeth, which was just prior to or exactly the time period in both books. It was living in the 16th and 17th Centuries and one book enhanced the other. “The Island at the Center of the World”, is well worth reading.