Roanoke: The Lost Colony--An Unsolved Mystery from History
Gr. 2-5. As inThe Mary Celeste(1999) andThe Wolf Girls(2001), this picture book for older children is framed by a fictional story about a detective's daughter who investigates a famous historical mystery. Here she tells readers about the founding of the Roanoke colony in 1587. It seems the colony's leader, who departed to obtain supplies, returned to find the colonists gone. The girl sets forth several theories and questions about what may have happened to the "lost colony," letting readers examine the facts and draw their own conclusions. There's a lot going on here: a framework story, the historical account, the ending hypotheses, and the addition of "notebook pages" with background information; children may need to read the book more than once to take it all in. The large, picture-book format offers plenty of scope for Roth's appealing narrative illustrations in watercolor and pencil. An attractive, intriguing introduction to the lost colony.Carolyn PhelanCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved