The Island At The Center Of The World: The Epic Story Of Dutch Manhattan And The Forgotten Colony That Shaped America (2005) - Plot & Excerpts
I picked up The Island at the Center of the World because it directly targets two of my own personal obsessions: New York history and Dutch language. Author Russell Shorto builds it upon thirty years of translation work by a man called Charles Gehring, a specialist in 17th century Dutch who resurrected the complete records of New Amsterdam, the Dutch settlement that is now New York City and environs. Shorto's thesis is that the Dutch colony was more successful and more influential than previously believed, unjustly forgotten because of the language barrier and because of Anglocentrist historians who both downplayed its significance and judged it a failure based on the criteria of the more religious New England colonies.There is a lot here to satisfy the curious New Yorker--Broadway's origin as an Indian path, stories about the first Brooklynites--but what makes this worth reading is its portrayal of Adriaen van der Donck, who opposed the autocratic rule of Peter Stuyvesant and insisted that the inhabitants of New Amsterdam deserved the rights of Dutch citizens, as opposed to employees of the Dutch East India Company. Trained as a lawyer at Leyden University (possibly even under the tutelage of Spinoza and Descartes), he even sailed back to the Netherlands at one point to make his case before the States General. Shorto shows that the egalitarianism of the Dutch Golden Age was brought to America by van der Donck and how echoes of it even made their way, more than a hundred years later, into our founding documents. Despite all this, however, van der Donck was forgotten after his death in an Indian raid. The only sign of him left in New York is the town of Yonkers (New Amsterdammers called him "Jonker," i.e. landowner).Most refreshing about this book is the vision it presents of a freewheeling, open society in early America--an attractive alternative for anyone who spent their school years learning about the prudent and stuffy Pilgrims. Shorto fittingly writes in a relatively breezy and unacademic style, a la Barbara Tuchman. Sometimes he takes the informality too far. On the whole, though, I found this a very worthwhile read.
The Island at the Center of the World is a wonderful example of a genre I call "The Superficial History of..." This is not to say that the book is not well-researched, or has a weak, generalized argument; Shorto obviously read exhaustively on the topic and his argument is a salient one. The Island at the Center of the World is the perfect book to introduce readers to the Dutch impact on New York and the legacy of Dutch influence in America. The book does have its flaws. While generally organized chronologically, at times I felt that Shorto was speaking about the colony on a macro level while referring to a micro-level event. So much of the book's emphasis is on the end-result--Van der Donck v. Stuyvesant, Stuyvesant v. the British--that his discussion of the early colony cannot help but be tinged by what has yet to come. This results in a blurring of the narrative. Shorto's desire to break down the hegemony of the British in colonial American history distorts the clean chronology he tries to follow. Stylistically, I had two complaints. First, while I enjoy Shorto's writing, his voice was too loud in the text. In some ways it was enjoyable to feel like he was standing next to me and telling me this amazing story, but ultimately I think it detracted from his authority and made him sound more like a fanboy than an expert. Secondly, the book was poorly edited. Too many times I found myself rereading the same anecdote and wondering why an editor hadn't caught the repetition. I recommend this book to two kinds of readers: 1) those who like fun, easy-to-read history books that portray vivid characters and don't get bogged down in the niche or the theoretical, and who don't really care that it's just skimming the surface of a larger historical debate, and 2) those history lovers who like a quick read to introduce them to a topic and give them a broad context for further readings. Shorto provides a bibliography that would not be out of place at the back of a historical monograph, and so those interested in looking at primary documents and/or more specific secondary works can easily find sources.
What do You think about The Island At The Center Of The World: The Epic Story Of Dutch Manhattan And The Forgotten Colony That Shaped America (2005)?
I really enjoyed this book. It covers the time the Dutch owned/ran/lived in Manhattan. How they got there and what influence they had on America is full of fascinating details uncovered only because some documents managed to survive around 350 years to reveal their secrets slowly, but surely. The information is apparently changing the way historians look at the birth of America. They are moving from the pure British tale to an awareness that the Dutch can be credited with some of the actual laws in New York - laws that respect the idea of representative government. We often think of the past as slow, but some of the people in this story seemed to be dashing back and forth across the Atlantic several times. Amsterdam at this time was apparently quite tolerant and open, and that concept was brought to the new world, making New Netherlands like no other colony in America.The storyline is spiced up with anecdotes about the origin of coleslaw, cookies, and other things we think are purely American.The author seems to be quite objective and states when there is doubt about some detail and how research is still ongoing.I don't know that much detail myself about this time in history, so I cannot know if there are any errors. However, the language was quite objective with phrases like "apparently" or "it seems" and other indications that something might lack strength of evidence.This was written only a few years after 9/11, and for a short time, I thought it might get a bit schmalzy about that and let that cloud the story. That was not the case. Yes, the tolerance in those early days was pointed out, but that was also something amazing at that time and it helped to shape the colony. Therefore, it was perfectly reasonable to go into detail about it.If you like history, I think you will enjoy this one.
—Karen Mardahl
Fascinating, and not just because I'm Dutch myself. For one thing it is a great book to just use as a guide to go sight-seeing around New York, for it suddenly makes you realize just how many traces of the early days as a Dutch colony are still around. Manhattan is great that way, for with a little preparation you can always still find the scraps of history amidst the overwhelming modernity.And the other thing that makes this book worth reading is simply because there are so many popular historical myths which it dispels. Understanding the true circumstances of the Remonstrance of Flushing, and how it set the stage for the Bill of Rights is just one of the many worthwhile stories. And then... just to picture how New York started as in effect just a "company town," is quite startling if you know the place today. In fairness of course these people did have some foresight!It's well written & a joy to read.
—Rogier
I have to confess, Island at the Center of the World is one of the quickest reads I've had as of late...let alone finished. How could it not be with such a rich background. New Amsterdam/New York and its earliest inhabitants tell an amazing story through Shorto's words and selection of historical documents. Having just returned from my first visit to this remarkable world city, I wanted to make sense of most of what I saw...even if I saw very little in comparison to what he has described. It's a tale that makes sense as soon as you've visited, or are due to travel to, New York.
—Jonathan Davis
