The American Boy's Handy Book

Infobox Book
name = The American Boy's Handy Book
title_orig = The American Boy's Handy Book
translator =


image_caption = Modern Cover
author = Daniel Carter Beard
illustrator =
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country = United States
language = English
series =
subject =
genre =
publisher = Scribner
pub_date = 1890
english_pub_date =
media_type =
pages =
isbn =
oclc =
preceded_by =
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"The American Boy's Handy Book" is a handbook of activities intended for boys, written by a founder of the Boy Scouts of America, Daniel Carter Beard. It is divided into seasonal sections, with activities appropriate for each season in their respective sections. Originally published in New York City in 1882 with 254 black-and-white figures and 63 illustrations.

Background

This book for American boys in the late 19th century is filled with black & white illustrations and schematics. It gives instruction and advice on subjects ranging from kites, fishing, knots, telescopes, tents, soap bubbles, animals, snowball warfare, puppets, kaleidoscopes, whirligigs, costumes, decoys and fireworks.

To modern readers who accept that younger generations today prefer television over fishing and AIM over building a salt-water aquarium, the contents of The American Boy's Handy Book may seem antiquated. The loss of physical activity as a pastime may be considered a detriment to the health of youngsters today, for whom the activities presented in The American Boy's Handy Book would perhaps be a boon. In any case, it is a fascinating portrayal of a pre-consumerist nation through the eyes of the young man seeking fun and pleasure by using the natural, earthly elements around him.

Further reading

* Beard, Daniel Carter [1890] (1995). "The American Boy's Handy Book". Originally published: New York, Scribner. This edition: Lincoln, Massachusetts, David Godine. ISBN 0-87923-449-0

ee also

*Boy Scout Handbook

External links

* [http://www.inquiry.net/traditional/beard/abhb/index.htm The American Boy's Handy Book at inquiry.net]
*cite book
last = Beard
first = Daniel Carter
authorlink = Daniel Carter Beard
title = The American Boy's Handy Book
url = http://books.google.com/books?id=VpICAAAAYAAJ
accessdate = 2008-06-26
date = 1890
chapter = Chapter XV: Fourth of July Balloons with New and Novel Attachments
chapterurl = http://books.google.com/books?id=VpICAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA136

References