THE FIRST BOOK OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION

by Richard B. Morris ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 1956

This is the best short account of the American Revolution we have ever read. A Professor of History at Columbia University Graduate School, Dr. Morris not only knows the period inch by inch, but has it set in an intelligent historical perspective. Both these things he conveys to young readers with the immediacy to capture their interest and the detachment that will help them to judge the Revolution properly. The book begins with the July, 1776, enactment, of an official Declaration of Independence, a year after the fighting had already begun. It then discusses the causes and the nature of the American uprising as the first of many to come in the world and yet distinct from those that followed in Europe in that it actually established a government by the people. The ensuing analyses- of the course the fighting took in the next six years and of the various conflicting motives behind it such as the farmers' wish for protection of the Crown or the bad timing of the British in asserting their power- is fresh and vigorous, simple yet well rounded. A book like this will do much to disperse old cobwebs of glory and honor and prod young people into knowing democracy's hurdles as well as achievements.

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1956

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Franklin Watts

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1956

Categories: NONFICTION