Giants in the Land

By Diana Appelbaum

Book Overview

A story of the human ingenuity needed to turn the Giant Pines of New England into masts for the great British Navy. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0395647207
• ISBN13: 9780395647202
• Release Date: September 1993
• Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 11.9" x 0.1" x 8.3"
• Age Range: 10 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 7

Customer Reviews

An outstanding history of the destruction of the mighty trees of the east coast of the United States

This book is about the past, specifically about the giant pine trees that grew up in what is now New England. Every schoolchild learns of the giant redwood trees on the west coast of the United States and how old they are. When the Europeans arrived on the east coast of the United States there were pine trees that were just as old and nearly as large as the mighty redwoods. However, that fact is rarely entered into the classroom discussions, as the large pine trees are all gone. The giant pine trees were the only ones that could serve as the main mast of the ships in the British Navy, so the largest were selected, cut and then transported to the sea. The minimum requirements were that the tree be at least forty inches in diameter at the base, one hundred and twenty feet high and completely straight. This book is the story of those trees and their fate. The problems of cutting and transporting such large trees to the sea are described in detail. In many ways it is a sad tale, as it is an object lesson against unregulated cutting and for the scientific management of the environment. However, there is a positive side in that the more people learn about what was lost, the more they will want to preserve and protect what is left.

Get this book!

An absolutely superb book about the 18th century process of selecting, felling and transporting enormous New England hardwood trees so that they might be fashioned into masts for the king's ships. This book is filled with wonderfully detailed drawings and fascinating information. An example: "A first-class British warship was larger than Faneuil Hall in Boston. It was larger than the State House at Williamsburg in Virginia, larger than any building in the colonies from Maine to Georgia." If only there were more books like this! A must for any classroom.

Diana Appelbaum thanks her readers

I have been delighted with the wonderful response that this book has elicited from readers, as well as by the generous reception that it has had among teachers, librarians and reviewers. Most recently, it has been honored by YANKEE MAGAZINE, where the editorial staff has included GIANTS IN THE LAND on a list of the best 100 books ever written for children about New England. I hope that parents who enjoy reading GIANTS IN THE LAND with their children will also enjoy reading BULLOUGH'S POND, a book for grownups published under my childhood name, Diana Muir.

Giants in the Land

I really like this book because all of it is true and it happened where I live. I like to think that the giants once grew where my house is. It is also special that the giants only grew in New England. The story is good to listen to or to read because it is telling real things in a way that is fun to hear. I particularly like the part about having to put smaller trees and branches underneath to keep it from breaking when the giant falls. My Dad and I have cut down small trees it is exciting when they fall. Learning history through books like this is great.