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As a reading instruction tealcher for over 20 years I was very pleased to read a book that I can recommend to a young group . Keeps them interested while teaching history, culture and adventure ! No sexual content or foul language...refreshing for a change. I look forward to the next book by Paul and it will be on my gift list for grandkids.
Great book for 5th grade up.
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The author was able to successfully blend in an interesting story line with factual events in describing the emigration of his family ancestors from Switzerland to America. The pace of the story was realistic enough to make it an exciting read with a personal touch that made the characters believable.
Enjoyable story line from a historical event
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This book is easy to read, but captures the reader's attention by providing realistic details of traveling by coach in 1845 from the Swiss Alps to the German seaside. One could almost smell the horses pulling the coaches and visualize the hardships of coach drivers and horses as they survived the arduous trip over 500 miles. Then, the realistic details shift to traveling on a large sailship to New Orleans as the captain and young Nick Hoffman befriend each other. Crossing the Atlantic was different from cruising today. It was perilous as travelers faced the raging sea, weather hazards, and deadly illnesses that took lives along the way. The Hoffman parents indeed depended upon their Creator in everyday living and taught their children to become faithful as well. I was surprised, however, to find the addition of ghosts in the story, especially since the book is woven with Biblical principles, which do not suggest interfacing with such phenomena. Nonetheless, I became tranquilized as I traveled on the coach alongside the driver and rolled with the waves next to the ship captain as he tried his best to keep the ship sailing in the right direction.
Lastly, the book does not address politics or racism, which is so prevalent in today's literary output.
Allows the reader to become part of the voyage
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This is an exceptionally realistic telling of the a real immigration story of a family as they travel from Switzerland to America. Nick was a curious boy ready for adventure. As the story unfolds, the details make you feel as though you are the 8th family member. You feel the trepidation of leaving everything and everyone as you make out for a new land. You experience every fear, each danger, and the relief and assurance as each time God answers their prayers. You follow this family from their home to Bremen, Germany by coach, and from there to the mouth of the Mississippi at New Orleans on the Grace Brown where the story ends. Because of the relationship you have built with the Hoffmans you are left wanting to know what happens as they step off the ship and set their feet upon the great country of America. I'm eager for the next volume!
One person found this helpful
An 1845 immigration journey through the eyes of a 10 year old boy, Nick Hoffman
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I liked that the author made you feel as though you were right there with the Hoffman family experiencing the world as it was in 1845. I love that the humanity of these people was on display and I could relate to what they were feeling.
I felt fear when they said goodbye to friends and neighbors and left the only world they knew behind, trusting that God would protect them on that dangerous journey to life in a new land, as so many did in the Great Emigration that occurred in the 19th Century.
I was carried away to a different time when people fell in love and courted with the part of the story about Francis, Jacob, and Margaret's 16-year-old daughter falling in love with the young handsome blond-haired coach driver Abelard who realizes the feeling is mutual. To court her he must come to America with the Hoffman family.
Then there is Nick Hoffman whom this story is about whose eyes see the world around him, not like other boys of his time. His curiosity, desire for adventure, and new relationships bring life to new characters in the story like Mr. Bieri the old coach driver from St Gallen to Stuttgart. Mr. Egger, the sailor on the Grace Brown sailing ship that the Hoffman family sails to America on, befriends Nick and teaches him to steer and sail the ship by compass.
This is an easy book to read. You will be carried into their world feeling the sway of the coach and the power and beauty of the horses that pulled it to the sway and rolling of the Grace Brown on a journey back in time.
I highly recommend this book for children and most definitely adults too. I am looking forward to the next book and Adventure of Nick Hoffman.
What a story full of Adventure, HistoryBecky Z
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I recommend this book because it’s full of adventure, family, and religion. I enjoyed how the author was very detailed. He gave a lot of description for what the characters are thinking, seeing, and saying. The story made me feel like I was really there. The book is a page turner, because every chapter is a new adventure.
A page turner full of adventures
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I recommend this book because it’s full of adventure, family, and religion. I enjoyed how the author was very detailed. He gave a lot of description for what the characters are thinking, seeing, and saying. The story made me feel like I was really there. The book is a page turner, because every chapter is a new adventure.
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I liked the fact that the author made you feel as though you were right there with the Hoffman family experiencing the world as it was in 1845. I love that the humanity of these people was on display and I could relate to what they were feeling.
I felt fear when they said goodbye to friends and neighbors and left the only world they knew behind, trusting that God would protect them on that dangerous journey to life in a new land, as so many did in the Great Emigration that occurred in the 19th Century.
I was carried away to a different time when people fell in love and courted with the part of the story about Francis, Jacob, and Margaret's 16-year-old daughter falling in love with the young handsome blond-haired coach driver Abelard who realizes the feeling is mutual. To court her he must come to America with the Hoffman family.
Then there is Nick Hoffman whom this story is about whose eyes see the world around him, not like other boys of his time. His curiosity, desire for adventure, and new relationships bring life to new characters in the story like Mr. Bieri the old coach driver from St Gallen to Stuttgart. Mr. Egger, the sailor on the Grace Brown sailing ship that the Hoffman family sails to America on, befriends Nick and teaches him to steer and sail the ship by compass.
This is an easy book to read. You will be carried into their world feeling the sway of the coach and the power and beauty of the horses that pulled it to the sway and rolling of the Grace Brown on a journey back in time.
I highly recommend this book for children and most definitely adults too. I am looking forward to the next book and Adventure of Nick Hoffman.
“
This book is easy to read but captures the reader's attention by providing realistic details of traveling by coach in 1845 from the Swiss Alps to the German seaside. One could almost smell the horses pulling the coaches and visualize the hardships of coach drivers and horses as they survived the arduous trip over 500 miles. Then, the realistic details shift to traveling on a large sail ship to New Orleans as the captain and young Nick Hoffman befriend each other. Crossing the Atlantic was different from cruising today. It was perilous as travelers faced the raging sea, weather hazards, and deadly illnesses that took lives along the way. The Hoffman parents indeed depended upon their Creator in everyday living and taught their children to become faithful as well. I was surprised, however, to find the addition of ghosts in the story, especially since the book is woven with Biblical principles, which do not suggest interfacing with such phenomena. Nonetheless, I became tranquilized as I traveled on the coach alongside the driver and rolled with the waves next to the ship captain as he tried his best to keep the ship sailing in the right direction.
Lastly, the book does not address politics or racism, which is so prevalent in today's literary output.
“
This is an exceptionally realistic telling of a real immigration story of a family as they travel from Switzerland to America. Nick was a curious boy ready for adventure. As the story unfolds, the details make you feel as though you are the 8th family member. You feel the trepidation of leaving everything and everyone as you make out for a new land. You experience every fear, each danger, and the relief and assurance as each time God answers their prayers. You follow this family from their home to Bremen, Germany by coach, and from there to the mouth of the Mississippi at New Orleans on the Grace Brown where the story ends. Because of the relationship you have built with the Hoffmans you are left wanting to know what happens as they step off the ship and set foot upon the great country of America. I'm eager for the next volume!
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I liked all the details of the family with coaches and horses. The people they met on the way were interesting. The family were so loving and included God in all their daily life. Nick was certainly adventurous and liked by everyone. Francis and Abelard loved each other from the first moment they met. I am anxious to read the next series to see where in America they land and what they do to make a living.
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This is the second book the first being Voyage To America in a series of stories about Nick Hoffman a Young 10-year-old boy who with his family migrate from Switzerland to America.
The Hoffman family arrived in the port of New Orleans in the early summer of 1845.
Young Nick and his mother are confused and bewildered when they are faced with the reality that slavery abounds in the country they are to call their new home. Nick‘s father Jacob is distraught over being faced with a reality that he may need to buy a gun for protection.
Nick makes friends with Tobias, a young boy about his age who introduces him to Lewis his cousin an orphaned boy who is the Wood box boy on the steam paddle wheeler, Julia. The boys become good friends and search for treasure, fish and seek adventure together. The family pays for passage on the Julia from New Orleans to Alton Illinois on the Mississippi river. Their journey is plagued with a violent engagement with robbers and Indians.
The most wonderful thing about this story is through all the chaos that Nick and his family experience. God is there to lift them up in their challenges and their sorrows. This is a must read for children and teenagers. The story has teaching situations about relationships, and the role that God can play if we only trust that he will protect us and has plans for us.
The Hoffman family’s experiences on their journey up the Mississippi River has a profound impact on their perspective about life and how God could allow such violence and evil to enter their world and nearly vanquish their lives, and nearly destroy their dreams.
But God as He does so well takes what was meant for their demise and like a red hot piece of iron removed from the fire, and placed on a anvil; He takes our experiences and shapes us and prepares us to be part of His plan. Nick Hoffman and his family with sheer faith, and hope that only God gives to His children moved into exterior into this great land to live out their dreams.
What awesome story!
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This novel picks up where the "Voyage to America" ends yet does not suppose that the reader has read the previous book. This is a quick and easy read and would be an excellent novel for young readers just entering the world of chapter books. Set in 1845 you see the dangers, challenges and adventures the Hoffman family encounter as recent immigrants from Switzerland. The tale is told through the eyes of 10 year old Nick Hoffman, the youngest of the family, a boy that thrived on learning and experiencing everything in this new country. The book is sure to hold a readers' interest as you eagerly anticipate the next adventure encountered by the young lad.
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Another fantastic addition to the Nick Hoffman series! The descriptive writing style is so immersive that it feels like you are right there experiencing the adventure alongside Nick and his family. I particularly appreciated how seamlessly the author integrated themes of faith and prayer into the story's events. It is a wonderful, uplifting read, and I am already looking forward to the next installment!
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The 2nd book was even better than the first. Ever chapter was filled with a new adventure and I couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen next. The writer does an amazing job of describing what the characters are seeing, smelling and feeling in such away that you feel like you are right there experiencing it yourself. Highly recommend this book to anyone.
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A Captivating Tale of Early American Adventure.
This book is a delightful and engaging read. It follows ten-year-old Nick Hoffman, who emigrates with his family from Switzerland to the Port of New Orleans in 1845. It is the second volume in the series, The Adventures of Nick Hoffman.
The author vividly depicts the conditions, culture, and challenges of America’s antebellum South. Nick’s natural curiosity and warmth quickly earn him new friends, and together they embark on thrilling—sometimes even dangerous—adventures in their new homeland.
The story is fun to read and hard to put down. I highly recommend it to young readers and adults alike who enjoy stories of escape, discovery, and early American life.
I’m already eager for the third book in the series!
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This is an easy enjoyable read. Can’t wait for your next book Paul. Thanks
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I highly recommend this second book in the Adventures of Nick Hoffman series. Nick and his family face a variety of dangers and painful losses as they make their way up the Mississippi River in search of a new home in America. Their trust and reliance on the Lord is a very real part of their lives in the trials and difficulties they face. The book is very interesting, enjoyable, and gives good historical detail. I would recommend it for readers of all ages. It would also make a great book to read together as a family!
