Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Chapter one, second paragraph "A long time ago - about SEVEN THOUSAND years in the past - families didn't live in house and shop at grocery stores. Instead they wandered from place to place..." With this begining the author goes on to explain how the nomads began to settle in the fertile crescent and become farmers. The problem is that her time is completely WRONG. Historians, Archeologists, and Scientists widely accept that the first nomads began settling the Fertile Crescent 10,000 to 12,000 years ago...a discrepency of 5,000 years! On top of that she explains how Jericho was founded soon after. Again the problem is that Jericho is widely accepted to have been founded 10,000 years ago...again a discrepency of 3,000 years! Why is she so off? I know that the books are Christian oriented, but to severely modify the dates to fit a Biblical agenda and timeline despite Scientific and Historic evidence is wrong and damaging. To intentionally lie to a child who trusts you to teach them the truth is horrible (besides, isn't lying a sin?). I am a secular home schooling parent and took a chance on this book because of the glowing reviews. However, I find myself with red pen in hand crossing out inaccurate and misleading dates and slanted "facts" before I teach my son. Her timeline for the Egyptian Dynasties are yet another travisty! This is especially frustrating because I like her writing style and the way my son responds to the narrative. In the end though it purports to be a History Text for school children, and it fails misreably on that level. If you are homeschooling and secular like myself, BEWARE and verify ALL dates! If you want a RELIABLE text for teaching your child ACCURATE and VERIFIED information I would suggest The Usborne Encyclopedia of the Ancient World: Internet Linked (History Encyclopedias)