BOOK NAME: Anacaona
AUTHOR: Edwidge Danticat

The Royal Diaries is a series about different kinds of royalty from all around the world and different periods of time. In keeping with its theme, it is written in the style of a diary. The series is written by a variety of authors who are subject matter experts. So, they write about time periods they know best. What’s also interesting about this series is that at the end of each book there are pictures and drawings of that particular time period.

This part of the series is based on a real story about a girl who is a “supreme chief” in waiting. The girl’s name is Anacaona, which means “golden flower” in the Taino language and she lives in Haiti in the late 1400s. Can you guess the famous person mentioned at the end of this story? If you guessed Christopher Columbus, you’re right! But this time he’s not a hero explorer looking for new lands, he’s an enemy of the native people and is greedily searching for gold.

In the book, Anacaona has to make a big decision–stay in her land and rule her people, or go to a new land so she may marry the man she loves. But that’s not all there is to the story. In fact, you’ll never look at Christopher Columbus the same way again. This book is both educational and an exciting read with extraordinary details and historical settings. You’ll learn something and be entertained along the way. Enjoy!