Pennavaria’s manual is a tutorial for the neophyte genealogist that introduces the mechanics of sketching a family tree. . . . For youth or adults, this guide simplifies the massive effort of analyzing family and clan roots. Recommended for public and high school libraries.

Booklist

. . . Pennavaria’s choice of topics, her logical arrangement, and clear writing make this work a welcome addition to the field. In a conversational, easy-to-understand style, the author introduces general genealogical topics before progressing to more difficult concepts.

National Genealogical Society Quarterly

An excellent genealogical guide for beginners in the field, but the title should not mislead advanced and even expert genealogists into ignoring this book because they too can find a lot of material to spark their interest . . . [Pennavaria] gives an accurate description of the massive difficulties faced by most immigrants, the vast majority of whom sailed in steerage on ships under challenging health conditions. In addition, Pennavaria provides practical and systematic advice on how to start a research project into family history and into how to organize, preserve and share results with others.

Bowling Green Daily News

This detailed book covers the basics of genealogy, including finding and evaluating records, the importance of documenting your sources, and a nice overview of using DNA testing for your genealogy research. Definitely worth reading if you're just getting started with genealogy or want to sharpen your skills.

Joe Beine, creator of the Online Death Indexes website deathindexes.com