Follow archaeologists as they trace the role of children in early history from prehistoric times in France to the remains of a fort in Florida. Reexamination of cave sites indicates that some of the art work was done by children. Detailed analysis of other digs suggests that children learned pottery making from adults in "class". Photographs, glossary, bibliography, further readings and websites add to the authenticity of the book. Beginning survey history students will find this book an interesting addition.

Children of the Past: Archaeology and the Lives of Kids by Lois Miner Huey is a nonfiction children's book that introduces young readers to both the methods of archaeologists and to the lives of children throughout Western history, focusing specifically on:
• Western Europe 18,000 B.C.E.
• Hunter-Gatherers Europe 6000 B.C.E.
• Iroquois North America 1000 C.E.
• Jamestown Colony Virginia 1600s
• Free African-American settlement of Fort Mose Florida 1700s

There are not many books that focus on archaeology for kids. Huey uses graphics throughout. Each section begins with a map to place the location in context and the book is filled with color photographs of cave art, digs, stone tools, pots, and other artifacts.

The book covers the basics of life in the time periods, focusing on what archaeology reveals was the role of children in their respective societies. For example, how scientists have proven that much cave art was produced by children or the possible training children went through to learn how to make stone tools or clay pots. Huey does a nice job in beginning with each section with a brief second person narrative.
The book is not long but it is heavy information.

I received this ARC from Lerner Publishing Group and Hillbrook Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Using information and evidence made available from anthropological research, this book provides information about the nature of childhood from cave roaming kids through kids living in Jamestown and Fort Mose. Exceedingly informative, but not overpowering, this book answers a real question: What was it like to be a kid in the past? Interesting photographs accompany the informative text. A fine introduction for young historians and anthropologists.

Most archaeology books we read do a great job of exploring every day life in a given society. The children get a brief mention, at best. So it was very cool to read about the hard evidence we have of the roles children played in those societies - the art and tools we know for certain they produced, the jobs they did. As an adult I found all of it very exciting and fascinating. I doubt a kid will feel the same. It's heavy in text and surprisingly dense with only a few photos and side bars. A good choice for a kid with an archaeology fascination, not so much for the general youth population.

Children of the Past: Archaeology and the Lives of Kids, written by Lois Miner Huey seeks to introduce young readers to both the methods of archaeologists and to the lives of children throughout Western history, focusing specifically on the following cultures/time periods:
• Western Europe 18,000 B.C.E.
• Hunter-Gatherers Europe 6000 B.C.E.
• Iroquois North America 1000 C.E.
• Jamestown Colony Virginia 1600s
• Free African-American settlement of Fort Mose Florida 1700s

One doesn’t see too many books focusing on archaeology, certainly in comparison say to astronomy, so it’s nice to see the topic addressed. Huey makes effective use of graphics throughout; each section opens with a map to place the location in context and the book is replete with color photographs of cave art, digs, stone tools, pots, and other artifacts. Brief sidebars of related information are scattered throughout, explaining things such as how scientists use carbon dating or determine gender via fingerprints.

The text is relatively slight, but covers the basics of life in the time periods, focusing as expected especially on what archaeology reveals was the role of children in their respective societies. For instance, Huey details how scientists have proven that much cave art was produced by children or the possible training children went through to learn how to make stone tools or clay pots, identifying not only a narrow age range but also the gender. At times Huey’s conclusions seem a bit speculative, sometimes identified as such and sometimes not. The book is strongest in its concrete, sharp details: a brass thimble with a piece of paper inside, a baby’s shoe in a well, a tiny toy windmill.

Huey also does a nice job in beginning each section with a brief second person narrative, which especially for younger readers will make history come more alive, make the distant path a bit more intimate and personal. Here, for instance, is how she begins the section on Jamestown:

You stride down the path through James Fort to the glasshouse where men are making glass objects . . . You’re fourteen, so you can work hard, but you don’t have the skills of the older German and Polish glassmakers . . . As you draw near, you hear the roar of the furnaces and the quarreling voices of the men. You sigh . . . Life is so hard in Jamestown.

Children of the Past could have done with a little more information and a bit more clarity on what was speculation and what was hard conclusion, but it remains an informative and engaging introduction, enough to get pique kids’ interest in the field and the topic and get them wondering on just how different, or similar, their lives are to those who lived centuries or millennia ago.