Fatal encounters, brutal wars, crass exploitation, missionaries, and new masters

Review of American Colonies: The Settling of North America, Vol. 1 by Alan Taylor

As comprehensive survey histories go, you can't do much better than this one. It combines detail, analysis, and succinct narratives into an absolutely wonderful reading experience. Best of all, even though I knew the outlines of the history quite well, I learned something on every page and felt enthralled for all 500 pages.

America was discovered at the …