A little more than a century ago, education in America followed a very different vision than it does today.
A few years back, I encountered a vintage relic in a used bookstore that, for a mere $6, opened my eyes to how much we have lost. “Appletons’ Fifth Reader” is the last volume in a 19th-century textbook series that emphasizes tradition, patriotism, and good taste.
Books that teach the basic elements of reading have a history dating back at least to Martin Luther, who wrote the first primer in the German language during the early days of printing. During much of the colonial period in America, the anonymously authored “The New-England Primer” was used to instill Puritan values in children. After the Civil War, an educational boom brought a demand for new textbooks….