Encounters unforeseen : 1492 retold
(Book)

Includes bibliographical references (pages 487-544).

Encounters Unforeseen: 1492 Retold dramatizes the history of Columbus's epic voyage and first encounters with Native Americans from a bicultural perspective, based closely on primary sources and anthropological studies. It presents the life stories of three historic Taíno chieftains and a Taíno youth side by side with those of Columbus and Spain's Queen Isabella and then depicts their fateful encounters. Written at the voyage's 525th anniversary, it ventures beyond traditional Eurocentric accounts of 1492--whether pro- or anti-Columbus--to offer a fresh, gripping, and personal portrayal where the Taíno protagonists are neither merely victims nor statistics, but personalities and actors comparable to the Europeans.