Great trip thru the history of our country

books:


	• America the Last Best Hope: From a World at War to the Triumph of Freedom William J Bennett Oasis Audio, 2007 average customer review:based on 70 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

History made enjoyable!

William Bennett makes history come alive for all readers. This book should be used in all of our high schools to enhance the learning experience. If more teachers would read and use this book our young students will grow to value the history of the United States, and will gain insight into how our government works.

Ross Gubser

Very good.

I think all Americans should know how our great nation came to be, and what is happening now to threaten it's sovereignty and constitution. Since 911, we have been to willing to give up our freedom and prosperity in hopes of some security. Now our economy, our republic, the balance of power between national govt. branches, and our constitutional liberties and values are being rapidly eroded in the name of the "war on terror". I highly recommend Ron Paul's book, Revolution: A Manifesto. We must set a good example for the rest of the world by following our constitution, not interfere with the internal affairs of other nations, such as imposing sanctions, puppet governments, much less threaten massive war on those who "might" have weapons of mass destruction!

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To be better informed, buy & read!

Dr. Bennett provides a wonderful walk through our history and points out aspects left unwritten in our standards texts.

Great trip thru the history of our country

Bennett has done an outstanding job of documenting the often chaotic, confusing story of the founding and development of our country in a very easy to read and comprehend book. It's become one of my permanent references on US history.

Okay overview of American history

This is a good book for anyone who either has little grasp of the main points of US history from 1492 to 1914, or for someone who's forgotten all that high school US history. But I thought it spent too much time on trivial facts, such as electoral and popular vote results of each and every presidential election, at the expense of facts that might have been more relevant and enlightening -- for example, a good explanation of the electoral college and why it was and still is in use. Similarly, the book mentions the votes and veto of the Chinese Exclusion Act, but completely neglects to explain what the Act was (I know all about it, but I bet a lot of readers are not familiar with it).

So definitely worth a read, but with the caveat that it might leave the reader wanting a more thorough history of the US.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Bennett, a secretary of education under President Reagan and author of The Book of Virtues, offers a new, improved history of America, one, he says, that will respark hope and a "conviction about American greatness and purpose" in readers. He believes current offerings do not "give Americans an opportunity to enjoy the story of their country, to take pleasure and pride in what we have done and become." To this end, Bennett methodically hits the expected patriotic high points (Lewis & Clark, the Gettysburg Address) and even, to its credit, a few low ones (Woodrow Wilson's racism, Teddy Roosevelt's unjust dismissal of black soldiers in the Brownsville judgment). America is best suited for a high school or home-schooled audience searching for a general, conservative-minded textbook. More discerning adult readers will find that the lack of originality and the overreliance on a restricted number of dated sources (Samuel Eliot Morison, Daniel Boorstin, Henry Steele Commager) make the book a retread of previous popular histories (such as Boorstin's The Americans). This is history put to use as inspiration rather than serving to enlighten or explain, but Bennett does succeed in shaping the material into a coherent, readable narrative.

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