November 2020 Book Notes: Edward Rowe Snow

I have something a little different for you today. It's not often I read nonfiction, but I've been pretty happy with my choices in that genre of late. Check out my thoughts on this collection of stories by Edward Rowe Snow. We read it aloud in our home school setting, but it'd be great in any setting where history was appreciated. 

Book Review: Fantastic Folklore and Fact by Edward Rowe Snow

Fantastic Folklore and Fact: New England Tales of Land and Sea by Edward Rowe Snow
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It was an absolute joy for me to read this collection of folk tales, legends and history from New England. Most of them, I'd never heard before. What a great way to preserve history! I read this aloud to my daughter as part of her curriculum so we could learn together. I think it's a shame that books like this are being discarded because of various reasons which pertain to a small percentage of readers. It may not be everyone's choice, and the material may not be everyone's favorite thing to study, but it is a part of our history and our heritage. I have another book like this about my own area of the states. I can't wait dig into it, either.
If you love American history and you enjoy reading legends, strange tales, factual stories and folklore in general, then I'd highly recommend this book. It's extremely well-written and perfect for reading aloud.

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It hurts my heart the way our history is being trampled. What happens when we forget where we've come from? What happens when we remove all the atrocities from the annals of history because they are not pleasant to the eye or ear, or because they hurt to consider that such terrible acts are actually the truth? When we forget where we've come from, when we forget what we've overcome, we lose sight of where we need to go from there. 

This book takes the reader back to much earlier days in New England. There are lots of stories of sailing vessels, light houses, and wooded areas which may not even exist anymore up there. I don't know how the landmarks have changed in New England in our current time since I've never had the chance to visit. I've always wanted to go when the leaves begin to change, though. Maybe one day, I'll get that chance. 

A Note and A Few Thoughts

It seems many of the big name sites are censoring anyone who doesn't share their political viewpoints. I can tell you right now, that in most cases, I am in that category. There may come a time when you can no longer find me here on this blog or on my new website. In preparation, I've set up some other accounts where you should be able to stay connected with me. 

You can find me on Parler. I'm working myself away from the main social media sites and this is a new one I've chosen to explore. You can also find me on Mastadon. I've linked to both but you'll have to create accounts to see what I post there. They're a little different than what I'm used to with the others, but I think that's going to be a good thing in the long run.

One of the main reasons I switched is because people are being censored for their opinions. What happened to freedom of speech? I am not on board with shutting down people's accounts when they are not using offensive language toward others, when they are simply stating what they do and what they believe. Why is it perfectly OK for one person to state their opinion on something while another person's opinion gets trampled? That's not free speech. 

 Why is it perfectly OK for one person to state their opinion on something while another person's opinion gets trampled? That's not free speech.

I'm also worried about my home school blog which is hosted on Wordpress. They just shut down a website who paid them on time and followed all their guidelines for somewhere around a decade. This company didn't push their opinion on anyone. All they did was what you are allowed to do with a Wordpress site. Since home schooling is not well-liked by many people in positions of power in our country, I wonder how long it will be before all home school websites are targeted because we teach our children to think for themselves. I don't believe that idea is so farfetched, either, considering how many 'news' sites are saying disinformation is rife. Yeah, it is but so many of those 'news' sites are the ones spreading it. 

I'm saddened and disappointed by what our country is going through right now. My heart breaks for people who have been fooled by charlatans who talk a good game but have no intention of following through. Also, things seem to be much more rushed these days. Why is everyone in such an all-fired hurry? Haste makes waste. That is one truthful adage you can bank on.

I'll stop here. I just wanted y'all to know in advance that if something happens to my sites, this is likely why.