Their Skeletons Speak: Kennewick Man and the Paleoamerican World

I know, I know, it’s Valentine’s Day and I’m not writing about love, hugs, or kisses!  I figured that since I’ve done that all week, we all needed a break and I just finished this book the other day, so it worked out perfectly.  I picked up Their Skeletons Speak for a couple of reasons, (1) I am fascinated by archeology, anthropology and ancient civilizations and more importantly (2) my brother is studying archaeology in graduate school right now and had informed me that he only looks at my blog when something looks interesting (and often that’s not the case), so Nick – this is for you!

Sally M. Walker has written a number of informational texts for young readers and this book is no exception.  She does a wonderful job of keeping the book informational, entertaining, and easy to understand often providing definitions right in the text.   The book focuses on the finding and studying of the Kennewick Man, the fossils of a skeleton of a man found in Washing state that is over 9,000 years old!  The authors then take the reader on a journey of how information can be gathered from the bones and other sites where Paleoamerican remains have been found.

What I really enjoyed about this book is that it offers the reader the viewpoints of both the scientists and the Native American tribes that wish for many of these remains to be given a proper burial by the tribe.  The book also allows the reader to understand that the information about these finds is ever-changing as technology and archeologists learn more about them.  This would be a great book for all of those boys and girls that want to learn more about ancient history, are interested in archeology, or enjoy informational text for reading for fun.

For more information, check out the author’s website.  There are also a number of resources that are available for readers to investigate further at the end of the book.  Another website that looks really interesting is A Journey to a New Land which features interactive videos about Paleoamerica for various age levels.

Title: Their Skeletons Speak: Kennewick Man and the Paleoamerican World
Authors: Sally M. Walker & Douglas W. Owsley
Publisher: Carolrhoda Books
Publication Date: 2012
Page Number: 136 pgs.