"A Few Acres of Snow": The Saga of the French and Indian Wars

I have read many books on the French and Indian war, by far I find that Francis Parkman is the "Godfather" of that time period but I stumbled across a copy of "A Few Acres of Snow" by Robert Leckie and couldn't put it down. He covers the settling of Canada and the colonies and gives you insight into what was happening in Europe at the same time. It's a must read for those who enjoy the history of the French and Indian war.

A fascinating study of a neglected era in American history, Leckie shows us with sharp and inviting prose how our nation came to be. Not only interesting in its own right, but a nice change from the decidedly Anglo-centric story taught to us in school (if they still even teach pre-revolutionary history in grade school). This is a fascinating but immenently readable account of the early stages in our nation's history, and it compellingly captures the players and events in the colonial world.

Military historian Robert Leckie presents an informative, fascinating, meticulously researched and superbly presented work of American history in "A Few Acres Of Snow": The Saga Of The French And Indian Wars. The reader is presented with the dramatic, extended, and savage conflict between England and France arising from their bitterly fought contest for supremacy in pre-Revolutionary America with both sides using Native American tribes as shock troops in bids for territorial dominance. Complete portraits emerge of key participants including George Washington, Samuel de Champlain, William Pitt, Edward Braddock, Count Frontenac, James Wolfe, Thomas Gage, and the Marquis de Montcalm. "A Few Acres Of Snow" is an important and very highly recommended addition to American pre-Colonial history collections and reading lists.

Enjoyed this book greatly. As a Western Pa native, the descriptions and well researched historical facts were impressive and colorfully protrayed. A great read for the history buff and people who want to better understand early history of the US.

This book provides as background to the French and Indian Wars a history of the (re)discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus and its subsequent colonization by Spain, France, and England. By emphasizing the different ways in which the colonizing powers treated their possessions, and providing histories of many of the major personalities involved in the growth of the colonies, Leckie does provide insight, as the jacket says, into "why we speak English today instead of French-and reminds us how easily things might have gone the other way." However, there are some irritating aspects. First, on at least two occasions material is repeated, sometimes word-for-word, in different chapters (compare the final three paragraphs on page 100 with the last two paragraphs on page 158 and the first paragraph on page 159, and also page 126 and pages 165 to 166). This appears to be at least rather sloppy editing, and gives the reader some problems in keeping the succession of events straight. Second, Leckie seems to be somewhat prejudiced against women. He names Queen Elizabeth I "the Pirate Queen," as if England alone engaged in somewhat less than legal behavior on the seas, and he devotes one of the few footnotes in the book to the following tirade:"Permit the author a single digression on this subject [women in combat]: In World War II the chief German ace, Erich Hartmann, shot down no less than 352 enemy planes. Our chief ace, Richard Bong, had 40 kills. What would happen to an American female fighter pilot challenging either one of these superior gentlemen of the skies? Obviously, she would lose her life, and the U.S. Air Force would lose not only the time and money wasted in training her as well, but also an aircraft valued at $36 million." I translate this argument as: "An average female fighter pilot challenging the best aces of WWII would 'obviously' lose. Therefore, it is ridiculous to think of using women as combat pilots." One could equally well argue that an average male fighter pilot challenging one of these aces would also probably lose-but this does not cause Leckie to suggest that men should not be allowed into combat.These two characteristics of the book kept me wondering what other prejudices and padding I might have missed.