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    • What was the tribe of Pocahontas?
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  • Controversies
    • Controversies
    • Is John Smith's account of his rescue by Pocahontas true?
    • Did John Smith misunderstand a Powhatan 'adoption ceremony'?
    • What was the relationship between Pocahontas and John Smith?
    • Is it possible that John Smith never actually met Pocahontas?
    • Was Smith's gunpowder accident actually a murder plot?
    • How should we view John Smith's credibility overall?
    • How was Pocahontas captured?
    • Did Pocahontas willingly convert to Christianity?
    • What should we make of Smith's "rescues" by so many women?
    • Were Pocahontas and John Rolfe in love?
    • What was the meaning of Pocahontas's final talk with John Smith?
    • How did Pocahontas die?
    • How did John Rolfe die?
    • Was there a Powhatan prophecy?
    • Why didnt the Indians wipe out the settlers?
    • When did the balance of power shift from the Powhatans to the English?
    • How big a part did European diseases play in the Jamestown story?
  • Books
    • Books
    • Books for Adults
    • Books for Children
    • On Custalow's 'True Story'
    • Is the Sedgeford Hall Portrait Evidence of a Crime?
    • Beaver Page
    • Notes on Literary Hoaxes and Historical Theory
    • How the Indians Lost Their Land
    • Notes in the Margins
  • Art
    • Art
    • Portraits
    • More on Van de Passe Engraving
    • Statue
    • The Disney representation of Pocahontas
    • Historical Images
  • Films
    • Films
    • Links to articles - Disney
    • Emerson Goes to the Movies
    • On "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt"
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Books about Pocahontas, Jamestown and the Powhatan Indians

Books for Adults
I suspect that most people who view this site will be teens or adults who have an amateur or research interest in Pocahontas and the Jamestown story.. If you do, you may be interested in the major publications on those subjects, which I've tried to comment on in this page. Adult books aim for historical accuracy, but can also be speculative. Click here for my ever-growing list, now with 'reviews' of over 34 volumes.
Books for Children
In my view, books for children on Pocahontas are a separate genre that often focus on the Pocahontas legend. Many shy away from the sordid details of colonization in favor of a feel-good narrative. The older ones in particular sacrifice historical accuracy in an attempt to interpret the main historical events in a way that's 'safe' for children. These books are often a thorn in the side to many Native Americans. Here's my list (still incomplete) with commentary.
Picture
34 'reviews' so far!
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26 'reviews' so far!

As I have only a personal and amateur interest in Pocahontas, I don't claim that the books found here make up a complete list. I am just recording the ones I have read with a brief commentary of each. I hope you find something useful.

Notes in the Margins
I take notes on the books I read, which may be of interest to only myself. However, I will try to record them here with additional comments for my own future reference.
  • Notes in the Margins: Love & Hate in Jamestown, by David Price (2007)
  • Notes in the Margins: A Land as God Made It  by James Horn (2005)
  • Notes in the Margins: Pocahontas and the Powhatan Dilemma by Camilla Townsend (2004)
  • ...

An original article on the Custalow book, The True Story of Pocahontas:

Meeting in the Middle: Myth-making in The True Story of Pocahontas: The Other Side of History

Tsurumi University Kiyo, No. 55-2, Feb. 28, 2018


Picture
How the Indians Lost Their Land
by Stuart Banner (2005)

This book falls somewhat outside the theme of this website in that it shows how Indian tribes across the continent lost their land to the European colonists. It's not really about Pocahontas or the Powhatans, but rather about most of the Native American tribes. I have only begun to summarize this book, but I hope to do so in much more detail someday. Check here for the page I've started.

Last updated Oct. 20, 2019 / Banner photo by Hadley-Ives
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  • Home
  • History
    • History
    • What was the tribe of Pocahontas?
    • Four Names of Pocahontas
    • Timeline
    • Pocahontas Bio by Charles Dudley Warner
  • Controversies
    • Controversies
    • Is John Smith's account of his rescue by Pocahontas true?
    • Did John Smith misunderstand a Powhatan 'adoption ceremony'?
    • What was the relationship between Pocahontas and John Smith?
    • Is it possible that John Smith never actually met Pocahontas?
    • Was Smith's gunpowder accident actually a murder plot?
    • How should we view John Smith's credibility overall?
    • How was Pocahontas captured?
    • Did Pocahontas willingly convert to Christianity?
    • What should we make of Smith's "rescues" by so many women?
    • Were Pocahontas and John Rolfe in love?
    • What was the meaning of Pocahontas's final talk with John Smith?
    • How did Pocahontas die?
    • How did John Rolfe die?
    • Was there a Powhatan prophecy?
    • Why didnt the Indians wipe out the settlers?
    • When did the balance of power shift from the Powhatans to the English?
    • How big a part did European diseases play in the Jamestown story?
  • Books
    • Books
    • Books for Adults
    • Books for Children
    • On Custalow's 'True Story'
    • Is the Sedgeford Hall Portrait Evidence of a Crime?
    • Beaver Page
    • Notes on Literary Hoaxes and Historical Theory
    • How the Indians Lost Their Land
    • Notes in the Margins
  • Art
    • Art
    • Portraits
    • More on Van de Passe Engraving
    • Statue
    • The Disney representation of Pocahontas
    • Historical Images
  • Films
    • Films
    • Links to articles - Disney
    • Emerson Goes to the Movies
    • On "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt"
  • Powhatan Tribes
    • Powhatan Tribes
    • Reservation Photos
  • Links
    • Pocahontas Quiz
  • Site Map
  • Contact