This book is a story of the world. It is a slice of history measured by the lifetime of Captain John Smith, a small courageous Englishman who was born in the days of Queen Elizabeth I and whose heart was "forever set on brave adventure."

This, the fourth of Genevieve Foster's WORLD books, continues her unique and original contribution to the reading of young people, and to their understanding of world events. It gives a vivid picture of the world just before and at the time of the colonization of America.

In the first section of the book John Smith is played back, pictorially and in the text, while the prominent personalities of his time hold the center of the stage.

In the last section the adventurous Captain steps forward and takes his rightful place in history as he hepls to establish the Jamestown colony.

From the dust jacket