The Heathen School

Reviews

“The masterful account of a utopian nineteenth-century experiment in education—one that goes painfully awry. A splendidly nuanced, wholly absorbing tale; patiently, brilliantly, John Demos coaxes unexpected lessons from a singular collision of enlightenment and assimilation.”

“Demos, a consummate storyteller, has written a parable about the nature of the American experiment itself: the hills and valleys of our dreams.”

“Absorbing…considerable narrative skills are again on display…The men and women in his stories come alive across the centuries…The book is peopled with a long cast of interesting characters—preachers, professors, philanthropists, missionaries, tribal chiefs.”

“Strange and fascinating narrative history…Demos gracefully interweaves the two couples’ stories with the historical and intellectual context in which they took place, raising key questions (especially, and devastatingly, ‘might not the heathen prefer to remain as they were?’).”

“Engrossing…Demos intersperses his historical narrative with short personal essays of on-the-road reportage…The Heathen School is a provocative addition to recent narrative histories that explore how racial categories and attitudes have changed over time in America.”

“Cornwall, a small community in northwestern Connecticut, would seem to have been an unlikely place to launch a campaign to save the world. But as John Demos recounts in this wonderfully crafted, deeply disturbing narrative, that is precisely what happened during the early decades of the nineteenth century…This splendid reconstruction of everyday life…describes what happened at Cornwall as a story of ‘high hopes, valiant effort, leading to eventual tragic defeat.’”

“I consider John Demos a superbly gifted scholar and writer…the appearance of this finely crafted, fascinating book can be a reason for celebration…This book demonstrates the power of historical narrative to illuminate ideas and issues that shaped the American past…[The] larger historical lessons that John Demos provides make for absorbing reading.”

“This brilliant work is highly recommended for all who study American history.”

“Demos manages a sly, significant feat in this historical study/personal exploration…In ‘interludes’ alternating with his historical narrative, Demos chronicles his visits to the places involved—e.g., Hawaii, Cornwall—in order to impart a personal commitment to this collective American tragedy. A slow-building saga that delivers a powerful final wallop.”

“Demos, a Yale historian and master of micro-history, turns his attention here to a well-intentioned 1820s effort to create a Connecticut school to Christianize ‘heathens’ (mostly Indians and Hawaiians) and send them forth to missionize…Demos tells this tale with scarcely hidden feeling. His research is characteristically prodigious, his writing disarming, and his story captivating and of national resonance.”

“Demos has done it again, finding macroscopic meanings within a microscopic locale…The best of intentions have the worst of consequences in this story, and the tragedies that almost inevitably ensue are like tombstones telling the saddest story of all. In my judgment, no one knows how to manage this material as well as Demos, disdaining moralistic judgments and condescending appraisals in favor of an elegiac tone that makes us all complicitous in ‘the tragedy.’”

“Moving, engrossing…Embedding personal stories in the long history of Anglo-Americans encounter with ‘others,’ Demos weaves a compelling tale that invites us to reflect on the meaning of the nation’s struggles towards equality.”

“The global meets the local as rarely before…John Demos uses his powerful literary gifts and insight to animate the experiences of people brought together by love, learning, and loss, across dramatic cultural divides. Imaginative, compassionate, and exquisitely written, this book will change your understanding of America’s founding project to make a difference for the world—and to make our different peoples into a national whole.”

“Tom Weiner brings professional polish, expressiveness, and intelligence to his narration of this history…His voice is strong and likable, and he matches his tone to the sense of the text well…It’s an admirably clear reading overall and will ably serve anyone interested in this odd, and often sad, corner of history.”

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