Old Silver Leg Takes Over! A Story of Peter Stuyvesant
Grade 2-6 The colorful Dutchman stars in the eleventh in Quackenbush's series of brief, lively biographies. The highlights of Stuyvesant's life are traced from his boisterous childhood and the loss of his leg in a battle with the Portuguese through his often controversial reign as governor of New Amsterdam and up to the colony's defeat by the English. The book is a lucid, sparkling portrait of daily life in 17th-Century New Amsterdam, where cabbage thieves and wandering pigs threaten the march of progress. The droll full-page illustrations accurately depict the clothing and architecture of Stuyvesant's times. The piece de resistance is the cartoon commentary which has become Quackenbush's trademark in these biographies. This time, endearing pigs tote picket signs and grumble about gubernatorial reforms. While not as comprehensive as the Crouses' Peter Stuyvesant of Old New York (Random, 1954; o.p.) or Widdemer's Peter Stuyvesant: Boy with Wooden Shoes (Bobbs, 1962; o.p.), this book will lure readers because of its brevity and sprightly format. Guaranteed to be a popular resource in a colonial studies or biography unit. Merilyn S. Burrington, formerly at St. Albans Town Central School Lib . , Vt.Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.