NH BOOKS

The Granite State used to be connected to African. The White Mountains used to be as tall as the Himalayas. Beavers used to be as big as bears and dinosaurs the size of turkeys. Those are just a few fascinating facts from this history of our rocky state. A whole lot happened here before the arrival of white settlers. 

READ: Tracking Passaconaway
SEE: Guide to Indian Artifacts

From the Publisher
A comprehensive look at the geography, environment, and peoples of the land that became New Hampshire, from ancient times through the colonial era.

In this masterful and elegant book, Michael J. Caduto tells the complete story of the land of New Hampshire—starting with the formation of earth 4.6 billion years ago and continuing with changes to its peoples and the environment through the seventeenth century. Part I offers a comprehensive look at every aspect of the ancient natural world—including geology, glaciology, botany, climatology, ecology, zoology, and paleobotany. It describes the formation of the land hundreds of millions of years ago as a result of major movements in the tectonic plates; chronicles the rise and fall of reptiles, mammals, birds, and plants and other life forms stemming from climatic changes; and explores the arrival of human beings during and after the relatively recent ice age.

HEAR the author interviewed on NH Public Radio

The rest of the volume immerses the reader in the history of the human populations in New Hampshire, beginning with the Paleoindian period of hunter gatherers over twelve thousand years ago and continuing through the arrival of horticulture among the Alnôbak (Abenaki) and beyond. Caduto explores the Alnôbak’s day-to-day existence, culture, and traditional tales as preserved by archeologists, anthropologists, historians, and living cultures. Emphasizing the beliefs, cultures, and practices of these native people, Caduto details the Alnôbak’s relationship to the natural world as he tells the story of coevolution between the land and people through time.

Caduto takes the reader on an exploration through New Hampshire’s rich and diverse history—using first-hand experiences, re-creations of natural and human environments, journeys through historical landscapes and visits with the families of ancient people—to present a thorough profile of the early beginnings of the Granite State.

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A Time Before New Hampshire:
The Story of a Land and Native Peoples

University of New Hampshire Press
University Press of New England
284 pp, 73 illus, 31 figures
Paperback, 6 x 9"
$19.95 (minus disount, plus shipping)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
MICHAEL J. CADUTO is an author, naturalist, and educator, and the founder of P.E.A.C.E.® (Programs for Environmental Awareness and Cultural Exchange). He has written twelve books, including the best-selling Pond and Brook (UPNE, 1990) and Keepers of the Earth (1988).