AnnickPress

An eye-opening guide to 100 career options in the 1800s.

If you could live in 19th century America, what job would you want? Sheriff? Prospector? Westbound settlers created many such opportunities, but the country’s economy also involved “careers” no one would ever choose, like slavery.

Explore this unique job guide and witness the sweeping changes of the 1800s through the eyes of the workers who helped shape it. You’ll discover frontier jobs like cartographer (don’t mistake a buffalo herd for a forest, as one unlucky mapmaker did) and wartime jobs such as doughboys (Civil War soldiers named for their bulgy buttons). Some occupations lost out to new technology (glassblowers couldn’t complete with 1,800 bottles-per-hour machines). Others, like elevator operator, were created by it. And some, like social reformers, sought to change the world itself.

Featuring a timeline of the 1800s and upbeat illustrations, this fascinating guide is sure to employ readers’ senses of history and humour.

Reviews:

“Written in an entertaining style ...”
—School Library Journal, 06/07

“... fascinating insights ...”
—Globe and Mail, 03/17/07

“****/4. Undeniably captivating ... this informational gem manages to stay fun and entertaining while still maintaining authority on the subject. Highly Recommended.”
—CM Magazine, 03/07

“... written in an engaging and interesting way ... highly recommended for elementary schools and public libraries.”
— Resource Links, 06/07

“[A] charming look at one hundred odd and ordinary jobs from the nineteenth century. Full of weird job titles, tips on answering Want Ads from the period, fun facts and great comics, this book truly provides young readers with an understanding of these different careers. Martha Newbigging’s tremendously expressive cartoons give the reader the opportunity to better understand everything from the drudgery of working as a Frontier Farmer to the satisfaction of being a Hokey-Pokey Seller.”
—Canadian Children’s Book News, Summer/07

“… an excellent addition to any school library.”
—Professionally Speaking, 03/08