A Merchant's Tale: The Life and Times of John Cabot

Alison Mews is co-ordinator of the Centre for Instructional Services at
Memorial University of Newfoundland.

This story-cum-coloring book is one among many titles inspired by the
Cabot 500 festivities that took place in Newfoundland throughout 1997.
Although the extensive acknowledgments suggest that the author made
every effort to be authentic in relating Cabot’s story, the book’s
awkward line drawings have little child appeal. Unfortunately, the text
is equally unpolished. Sentences like this one—“The traders in Mecca
travelled to these places to meet the Cathay traders and trade for
goods”—would have benefited from the use of a thesaurus, at the very
least. Not recommended.