Of Plymouth Plantation, 1620-1647 by William Bradford

This book contains William Bradford's retrospective account of the Pilgrims' settlement at Plymouth Plantation. The beginning portions of the book, which give the account of how the Pilgrims came to New England via Leyden in Holland, and their struggles in the first winter, and their dealings with the Native Americans through Squanto's help were all familiar to me as they match (more or less) the story that gets told about the Pilgrims. The later parts, including all the difficulties in dealing with the investors in England, the bad behavior of some of the colonists (which ends up being presented in surprising detail), and the growth of the colony (and of people coming to other places in New England) was more of a surprise. The prose is remarkably clear to the modern ear.