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Pedro's Journal
| Item #: | BM-001368 |
|---|---|
| ISBN: | 9780590462068 |
| Grades: | 3-6 |
Product Description:
Pam Conrad brings you this gripping log of Pedro de Salcedo, who was aboard the great voyage with Christopher Columbus from August 3rd of 1492 to February 14th of 1493. Pedro is a young man of only fourteen, and it is his first time away from home. The captain quickly makes him a sort of right-hand man. Pedro watches how intensely the men doubt Columbus from the beginning. The day before they finally touch land, Columbus promises they will turn around home. As fate would have it, the next day they land in a place Columbus names San Salvador. Here they gain experience with the natives, who are extremely docile and generous. In each place they land on, the people gradually become unfriendly - perhaps some words of caution were spread? Soon enough, the entire crew realizes they have not landed in India and there are no spices or silks or pearls. In fact, nobody except Columbus cares about anything except heading home to Spain at this point. After the sinking of the Santa Maria, some of the men board the Nina to go home, and the others are left behind to start a Spanish settlement in the New World. Pedro fears he may not ever return home. On the last day at sea, he encases a last letter into a barrel and throws it out to the ocean so that if it ever reaches his home, his mother should know that he loves her and she should pray for his soul. This recounting is sometimes suspenseful, troubling, and mystifying, but at all times it is engaging.
