Davidson has written a work that should lead readers to reflect anew on America’s past and present. . . . We can all use not just a good refresher course on American history, but also some good historical thinking on how we might better realize freedom, equality, and E pluribus unum.”—The Daily Beast“Davidson . . . opens this smooth overview of 500 years of American history, beginning with Columbus’s arrival, with an engaging premise, arguing that we all make our own history pieced together out of personal memories, which in turn become the warp and weft of the cloth of history.”—Publishers Weekly“This attractive, eminently readable account covers the United States, from founding times to the current day. . . . Seldom has this story been told from such an approachable viewpoint. Students will flock to the book.”—Library Journal“Davidson takes familiar stories from America’s past and adds novelistic flair. . . . From the first pages, the author shows enthusiasm for his project, describing the difference between people who ‘make’ history and people who ‘write’ it.”—Kirkus Reviews“This is a clear, at times dramatic . . . traditional historical narrative that can serve well as an introductory text.”—Booklist“To the ranks of Yale’s series of ‘little’ histories (art, science, the world, etc.) James West Davidson now adds his pithy and surprisingly sharp A Little History of the United States, which despite its title begins its story well before the thirteen American colonies declared their independence from Great Britain.”—Open Letters Monthly“A lively, not-so-little look at the little ways that people from all walks of life, cultures, backgrounds, and incomes came together to make a nation.”—Q Salt Lake Magazine“[Davidson’s] ability to weave anecdotes and an accessible writing style into a clear and concise illustration of a cultural trend or political movement is enviable.”—Civil War Book Review“This is a little history with a big heart, meant to be savored more than studied, read out loud like poetry, or perhaps sung like a hymn.”—Joseph J. Ellis, author of Founding Brothers“With imagination, verve and stylishness, James Davidson distills American history into its compelling essence. For newcomers to the subject, an incomparable primer; for veterans, the familiar made fresh with judicious insight.”—H. W. Brands, University of Texas at Austin“A book of literary grace and narrative invention. Not only the writing but also the conceptualization consistently engage the reader. Uncommonly imaginative.”—Christine Heyrman, author of Southern Cross and American Apostles“A persuasive and enjoyable read. Davidson faced a herculean task in condensing more than five hundred years of history into a slim volume. He fulfills this difficult brief with authority and brio.”—Richard Aldous, author of Reagan and Thatcher: The Difficult Relationship“It has a little of Zinn, a little of Lies My Teacher Told Me, and a little of History of US. I found it readable, interesting, and useful.”—Sandy Foster, U.S. history teacher, The Harley School
07/20/2015
Historian Davidson (coauthor of The American Nation) opens this smooth overview of 500 years of American history, beginning with Columbus’s arrival, with an engaging premise, arguing that we all make our own history pieced together out of personal memories, which in turn become the warp and weft of the cloth of history. With those pieces Davidson stitches together the people and events that created a country united “under a banner of freedom and equality.” Crafting a “little” narrative requires the skills of a seasoned historian, and Davidson accomplishes it through a combination of structure and approach. The book is divided into 40 brief, easily digestible chapters composed in a conversational style akin to a historical fireside chat. To organize hundreds of years of events, Davidson keeps his focus on politics, economics, and war, which allows him to demonstrate that Americans’ dedication to freedom and equality was not uncontested. Because of the vastness of the continent and of the many people who lived there, freedom and equality meant different things at different times. This is particularly evident in the chapters on the Civil War, the Progressive movement, and the post-WWII movement for civil rights. Davidson subscribes to American exceptionalism, which, in light of his own material, may strike some readers as Pollyannaish. Illus. (Sept.)
It has a little of Zinn, a little of Lies My Teacher Told Me, and a little of History of US. I found it readable, interesting, and useful.”—Sandy Foster, U.S. history teacher, The Harley School
[Davidson’s] ability to weave anecdotes and an accessible writing syle into a clear and concise illustration of a cultural trend or political movement is enviable.”—Civil War Book Review
A lively, not-so-little look at the little ways that people from all walks of life, cultures, backgrounds, and incomes came together to make a nation.”—Q Salt Lake Magazine
To the ranks of Yale’s series of “little” histories (art, science, the world, etc.) James West Davidson now adds his pithy and surprisingly sharp A Little History of the United States, which despite its title begins its story well before the thirteen American colonies declared their independence from Great Britain.”—Open Letters Monthly
Davidson has written a work that should lead readers to reflect anew on America’s past and present . . . We can all use not just a good refresher course on American history, but also some good historical thinking on how we might better realize freedom, equality, and E pluribus unum.”—The Daily Beast
This is a clear, at times dramatic . . . traditional historical narrative that can serve well as an introductory text.”—Booklist
A persuasive and enjoyable read. Davidson faced a herculean task in condensing more than five hundred years of history into a slim volume. He fulfills this difficult brief with authority and brio.”—Richard Aldous, author of Reagan and Thatcher: The Difficult Relationship
A book of literary grace and narrative invention. Not only the writing but also the conceptualization consistently engage the reader. Uncommonly imaginative.”—Christine Heyrman, author of Southern Cross and American Apostles
With imagination, verve and stylishness, James Davidson distills American history into its compelling essence. For newcomers to the subject, an incomparable primer; for veterans, the familiar made fresh with judicious insight.”—H. W. Brands, University of Texas at Austin
This is a little history with a big heart, meant to be savored more than studied, read out loud like poetry, or perhaps sung like a hymn.”—Joseph J. Ellis, author of Founding Brothers
10/15/2015
"Little Histories" are written by established researchers who can encapsulate a complex body of knowledge in relatively few pages without oversimplifying. Independent scholar Davidson is a good choice for the series, having written several history textbooks and coauthored a book on historical evidence (After the Fact). This attractive, eminently readable account covers the United States, from founding times to the current day. The discussion of political and social history is solid and sensible. However, little information about the arts is included; the only reference to jazz is in relation to the Charleston fad, not a milestone in the development of America's music. Nor does Davidson cite authors such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Fenimore Cooper, or Richard Wright, even though mentions could have easily been integrated into his discussion of social history. More seriously, there is no commentary on the growing income gap between rich and poor, the emigration of industry from the States, and changes in campaign financing, which are altering the dynamics of politics in America today. VERDICT While this title suffers from some omissions, seldom has this story been told from such an approachable viewpoint. Students will flock to the book.—David Keymer, Modesto, CA
2015-07-15
In this breakneck survey of American history, Davidson (co-author: Great Heart: The History of a Labrador Adventure, 2006, etc.) condenses 500 years of war, exploration, and social change into a 300-page crash course.Starting with Christopher Columbus, the author follows the usual grade school timeline, from the conquistadors to Vietnam. He quickly summarizes major movements like the Industrial Revolution and the Cold War, distilling entire decades into a few paragraphs. Davidson takes familiar stories from America's past and adds novelistic flair—e.g., "In 1620 five or six Nauset Indians were trotting down the Cape Cod beach one November day, their dog in the lead, when they saw sixteen strangers coming toward them. The Indians didn't wait for an introduction; they turned and ran, whistling for their dog to follow." From the first pages, the author shows enthusiasm for his project, describing the difference between people who "make" history and people who "write" it, and he refers to this theme several times throughout. However, Davidson breezes through major national events, sewing anecdotes and trivia together without much direction or purpose. We revisit well-worn yarns, like Abraham Lincoln's assassination and the Cuban missile crisis, which are told in the traditional way. Davidson introduces some recent scholarship—e.g., the Chinese arrival in the Americas in 1421 and the exploits of Osama bin Laden—but the expected chunks are missing: women are absent until they eventually make cameos as suffragettes. African-American history barely exists between Reconstruction and Martin Luther King. Davidson tries to liven up his story with nuggets of wisdom, but most of it is boilerplate: "Sometimes the tiniest events have immense consequences"; "Sometimes it seems as if all American history has been a scramble for more and more." In the end, Davidson glosses over his topics and adds little to the broader conversation. An admirable attempt to get readers excited about history, but the approach is too hurried and shallow.
