- Hardcover: 512 pages
- Publisher: Knopf; 1 edition (Oct 30 2001)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0679445943
- ISBN-13: 978-0679445944
- Product Dimensions: 24.1 x 16.7 x 3.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 454 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,872,154 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
In 1851, when theologian Horace Bushnell stood on the village green in Litchfield, Conn., and looked back lovingly on the "Age of Homespun," he was expressing a perennial American nostalgia for the "good old days," when clothing and other necessities were mostly made at home by family labor. Historian Ulrich (author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Midwife's Tale) has not set out to deflate the sentimentality that accompanies Bushnell's vision, but rather to trace its genesis and understand how it has weathered the test of time. In her previous works, Ulrich studied the lives of ordinary people, examining their diaries and what they left for probate when they died in order to understand their place in history. Here, under the tutelage of various museum curators, Ulrich shifts toward a material culture study studying objects to understand the people who used them. From 14 artifacts of early American life (baskets, spinning wheels, needlework, etc.), Ulrich uncovers details about their makers and users and the communities they built. Eighteenth-century New England was a battleground of Indian, colonist, slave and European cultures, and each left its mark on the design of these "surviving objects." A quote from Bushnell and an illustration of an object open each chapter. What follows is anything from a rambling digression on a particular cabinet's provenance to a detailed discussion of how dyes were made or flax prepared. As fascinating as the book can be, though, general readers may give up halfway through, finding it frustratingly diffuse and too much of a patchwork. But early Americanists, historical sleuths and "textilians" will delight. 165 illus.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Items produced in the home to be used by their owners and treasured by later generations are worthy of study in their own right, but they also tell us much about those who made and kept them. Ulrich, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Midwife's Tale: The Life of Martha Ballard Based on Her Diary, 1785-1812, again offers brilliant insights into the lives of early Americans, as she examines their material culture as well as their lives. This engaging combination of women's studies, history, and the study of museum artifacts will delight a wide variety of readers. Chapter by chapter, Ulrich presents interesting early American objects and follows their description with the even more fascinating stories of the people who owned them and the world in which they lived. This work, approachable for the casual reader but based upon firm scholarship, would be a welcome addition to most larger academic and public libraries. Theresa McDevitt, Indiana Univ. of Pennsylvania
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Why Do We Keep That Old Junk?,
By
This review is from: The Age of Homespun: Objects and Stories in the Creation of an American Myth (Hardcover)
Read this book to find out how the impulse to fill our closets with old textiles and oddments fulfills a cultural tradition so deeply imbedded that it may as well be a genetic imperative. Ulrich's sensitive descriptions of the nuances of colonial society explain how bits of fabric evoke class distinctions, wealth, and a sense of self worth. Perhaps even more interestingly, the interpretations that the decendants give to these items tell us more about their contemporary society than genuine colonial history -- something to muse over as we wish for the "good old days" (My goodness, who would EVER have thought the 1970's would be something to remember fondly?!?)This is a scholarly book, and the earlier review that suggests readers may be tempted to give up halfway through is correct. Stick with it though -- there are rewarding insights in the final chapters. Throughout, the early colonial history is fascinating and the personal details are tantalizing.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Material Artifacts Spun Into Historical Silk,
By
This review is from: The Age of Homespun: Objects and Stories in the Creation of an American Myth (Hardcover)
The Age of Homespun was an age created out of American myth, but behind this mythology Laurel Thatcher Ulrich has found many treasures of true lives led. The author takes fourteen objects and spins out a story of cultures clashing and times changing. It is a fascinating series of narratives richly written with economy and style. Ulrich is most effective in showing the Indian struggle in this settlers' Age of Homespun. The author leaves no one out of the story and her selection of objects reflects this care as she cleverly creates a complete mosiac for this age. The only struggle I had with the book was my own ignorance of spinning, weaving, carding, etc., therefore being confused by some of the terms and concepts. An interesting book and a pleasure to read.
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Antiques Roadshow on Steroids,
By yvette marshall (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Age of Homespun: Objects and Stories in the Creation of an American Myth (Hardcover)
Excellent book! I had no idea that provenance could be so exciting! Ms. Ulrich is detail oriented and that is definitely a plus. She'll begin talking about a seemingly simple basket then launch into a social history of the place, people and time that basket was used by examining articles and announcements in the newspaper lining the basket. Brilliant! I learned so much about our America that I didn't know. Lemuel Haynes, revered 18th century black Reverend, wow! I was shocked and amused to find that people were struggling with what to do with the homeless back in 1795! What a complex and interesting place we live in. As a huge fan of American history I found this book to be a treasure. Read it if you want to know more about your American self.
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