http://www.amazon.com/American-Discovery-Europe-Jack-Forbes/dp/0252031520
Editorial Reviews
Review
"Forbes makes an unusual and fascinating contribution to the story of the New and Old Worlds and the links between them, questioning in a welcome way the truth and ideological sway of orthodox history. He leads his reader along paths rarely, if ever, trodden, ultimately in search of a fairer account of native America and its role in planetary experience. This is a quest that Forbes 's own ancestry and --not least --keen sense of language well equip him to undertake. He eminently succeeds." Gordon Brotherston, author of Image of the New World: The American Continent Portrayed in Native Texts
Review
"Interesting and thought provoking. . . . [It] raises many significant questions."--
American Anthropologist
"Highly refreshing. . . .Very convincing."--
Elixir
Product Description
"The American Discovery of Europe" investigates the voyages of America's Native peoples to the European continent before Columbus' 1492 arrival in the 'New World'. The product of over twenty years of exhaustive research in libraries throughout Europe and the United States, Jack D. Forbes employs a vast number of primary and secondary sources to paint a clear picture of the diverse and complex societies that comprised the Americas before 1492 and reveals the surprising Native American involvements in maritime trade and exploration. Starting with an encounter by Columbus himself with mysterious people who had apparently been carried across the Atlantic on favourable currents, Forbes proceeds to a detailed discussion of ocean currents and then to exploring the seagoing expertise of early Americans in the Caribbean, on the coasts of Greenland, and beyond. He also discusses theories of ancient migrations, the evidence for human origins in the Americas, and other early visitors coming from Europe to America, including the Norse. The book closes with a discussion of Native travellers to Europe after 1493, when they came mostly as slaves. The provocative, extensively documented, and heartfelt conclusions of "The American Discovery of Europe" present an open challenge to received historical wisdom. This book will be of lasting importance to Native people and redefine the way future scholarship views American history.
Book Description
An independent and indigenous revision of established history
The American Discovery of Europe investigates the voyages of America’s Native peoples to the European continent before Columbus’s 1492 arrival in the “New World.” The product of over twenty years of exhaustive research in libraries throughout Europe and the United States, Jack D. Forbes employs a vast number of primary and secondary sources to paint a clear picture of the diverse and complex societies that comprised the Americas before 1492 and reveals the surprising Native American involvements in maritime trade and exploration.
Starting with an encounter by Columbus himself with mysterious people who had apparently been carried across the Atlantic on favorable currents, Forbes proceeds to a detailed discussion of ocean currents and then to exploring the seagoing expertise of early Americans in the Caribbean, on the coasts of Greenland, and beyond. He also discusses theories of ancient migrations, the evidence for human origins in the Americas, and other early visitors coming from Europe to America, including the Norse. The book closes with a discussion of Native travelers to Europe after 1493, when they came mostly as slaves. The provocative, extensively documented, and heartfelt conclusions of
The American Discovery of Europe present an open challenge to received historical wisdom. This book will be of lasting importance to Native people and redefine the way future scholarship views American history.
About the Author
Jack D. Forbes is professor of Native American studies and anthropology emeritus at the University of California, Davis.
