Product Description

America's most acclaimed historian presents the intricate story of the year of the birth of the United States of America. 1776 tells two gripping stories: how a group of squabbling, disparate colonies became the United States, and how the British Empire tried to stop them. A story with a cast of amazing characters from George III to George Washington, to soldiers and their families, this exhilarating book is one of the great pieces of historical narrative.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #39517 in Books
• Published on: 2006-05-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 400 pages

About the Author
David McCullough has won the Pulitzer Prize, the Francis Parkman Prize, the Los Angeles Times Book Award and has twice won the National Book Award. He is the author of John Adams, Truman, Brave Companions, Mornings on Horseback, The Path Between the Seas, The Great Bridge and The Johnstown Flood.

Customer Reviews

Excellent account of eventful year - 1776
Popular history doesn't come better than this. David McCullough has an excellent writing style that makes history come alive - this is a book I read in very few sittings.

The idea of writing a book about events in one year is not new, McCullough does an excellent job of describing the hardships for both American and British soldiers alike. The ordinary American soldier is not painted in a flattering light (dissertions, disgusting personal hygiene, and poor discipline).

One person does shine through from almost every page of this book - George Washington. McCullough deals with Washington's self doubt and slave owning sensitively, but he also paints a picture of an extraordinary man. Perhaps McCullough might consider a biography (he has done John Adams and Harry Truman).

An excellent book - thoroughly recommended to all with even a passing interest in American/British history. Enjoy!

1776 and all that!
I expected American propaganda and a slagging off of the British, but McCullough excelled himself in his work as he recounted this exceptional year in world history. Sane, balanced and very inspiring, he brought the terror of defiance against the British Empire to life without any sickly American nostalgic, flag waving nonsense.
The book ends suddenly, and one would need to know "what happened next" to complete the story, but anyone who doesn't know that is living on Mars. That is not easy to say coming from a Brit. A truly great read. I even bought my dad a copy!

Disappointing and limited look at the year
David McCullough's exploration of the year that the United States declared independence is disappointing both in what material he covers as well as what material he leaves out. Although the title is "1776", the book is actually about the first three major battles in which George Washington was the commander of American forces. Other events which occurred in that year such as the publishing of "Common Sense" by Thomas Paine and the signing of the Declaration of Independence are barely mentioned and then only in how they affected General Washington's command. The book ultimately is a brief discussion of the siege of Boston, the fall of New York City, and the battles of Trenton and Princeton. Unfortunately, McCullough is not a very good battle historian. His descriptions of the action make it very difficult to picture how the battles were fought and he includes no diagrams or illustrations to help explain the battlefield action. He does not describe the weapons used by either side.

McCullough also has a great deal of respect for George Washington, so much that he attempts to excuse Washington owning slaves. He makes a point to let us know that Washington freed his slaves after his death but fails to note that Washington had no children to inherit them. He also tries to make much of Washington having written a polite letter to an African-American woman who wrote him a poem. This trivializes the brutality of a system that Washington happily participated in and one in which he gained great wealth.

The narrative itself is rather choppy as McCullough frequently interrupts the flow of the story to provide narratives and letters written at the time. Although some are interesting, most simply repeat what McCullough has already discussed in the text. And there are quite a few spots in the text where McCullough has mangled his sentences. I found myself having to reread sentences because their structure was so poor. "He knew, as the enemy had no idea, just how big a country it was." Rewording would have helped this sentence immensely. "His council assembled, Washington made the case for an all-out amphibious assault on Boston, by sending troops across the shallow Back Bay in flat-bottomed boats big enough to carry fifty men each." So, did Washington make his case by sending the troops? Or did he make a case for sending the troops? Poor editing seems to be fairly common throughout the book.

Overall, the book is disappointing especially considering the many rave reviews it has received but it is still a fairly quick and easy read. If you are interested in a brief discussion of George Washington's early military career then the book could be worthwhile but I had expected much better from a two time Pulitzer Prize winner.