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Loading... 1776by David McCullough
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. (unabridged audiobook read by the author): I take partial responsibility for my opinion of this book, because I really ought to have known better. I knew it would cover a pivotal year in the American Revolution, but what I did not realize was that it would focus exclusively on the military aspect. The Declaration of Independence is almost an afterthought while each battle, march, and strategy is described in painstaking detail. I did learn a lot about George Washington as a person, which was cool, but overall I was kind of bored. It didn't help that the author's voice was a tad dull and droning, making him easy to tune out. (  ) melydia | Oct 28, 2009 |  Classic McCullough, well researched and reader friendly. (  )1  corrmorr | Sep 25, 2009 | 1 kahlee2000 | Sep 9, 2009 | Really enjoyed this book. Had no idea about the details surrounding The Revolutionary War. It's also interesting to hear about George Washington. Even though everyone pretty much considers him to be the bomb now, i had no idea that he had no idea what he was doing and almost f'd it all up. A great read though. ( )1 pescatello | Aug 27, 2009 | McCullough does a great job in 1776 in dispelling the myths of both the Continental and British army during the starting months and year of The American Revolution. A great thing about a book like this, is the names of the brave men who have essentially been lost over time. Sure we know all about General Washington, but what about Joseph Reed, General Nathanael Green (Washington's favorite general), General Henry Knox, John Sullivan, Lord Stirling and others? In 1776 we learn how these inexperienced men kept the army together while in dire straights, while morale was down. The fact that there was even an army left at the end of 1776 when Washington, along with Greene, Sullivan and Stirling, led them to an unexpected attack and victory at Trenton and onto another victory at Princeton before the year was over, was remarkable. Some amazing things happened after these victories: Morale was up. Soldiers who were about to leave at the start of the year, instead stayed, realizing they were fighting for their futures. And the British had a grudgingly new respect for the Americans. One cavalry officer wrote: ...the fashion in this army to treat them in the most contemptible light, they are now become a formidable enemy. McCullough perfectly captures the ups and downs of the Continental/American army: Sickness, devastating blunders, desertion, loyalty and victory. This is the perfect account of the men who fought on both sides for the battle for America in the beginning months. Thoroughly researched and exquisitely told, this is the starting point for knowledge of The American Revolution. ( )1 runaway84 | Aug 27, 2009 |  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com (ISBN 0743226712, Hardcover)Esteemed historian David McCullough covers the military side of the momentous year of 1776 with characteristic insight and a gripping narrative, adding new scholarship and a fresh perspective to the beginning of the American Revolution. It was a turbulent and confusing time. As British and American politicians struggled to reach a compromise, events on the ground escalated until war was inevitable. McCullough writes vividly about the dismal conditions that troops on both sides had to endure, including an unusually harsh winter, and the role that luck and the whims of the weather played in helping the colonial forces hold off the world's greatest army. He also effectively explores the importance of motivation and troop morale--a tie was as good as a win to the Americans, while anything short of overwhelming victory was disheartening to the British, who expected a swift end to the war. The redcoat retreat from Boston, for example, was particularly humiliating for the British, while the minor American victory at Trenton was magnified despite its limited strategic importance.Some of the strongest passages in 1776 are the revealing and well-rounded portraits of the Georges on both sides of the Atlantic. King George III, so often portrayed as a bumbling, arrogant fool, is given a more thoughtful treatment by McCullough, who shows that the king considered the colonists to be petulant subjects without legitimate grievances--an attitude that led him to underestimate the will and capabilities of the Americans. At times he seems shocked that war was even necessary. The great Washington lives up to his considerable reputation in these pages, and McCullough relies on private correspondence to balance the man and the myth, revealing how deeply concerned Washington was about the Americans' chances for victory, despite his public optimism. Perhaps more than any other man, he realized how fortunate they were to merely survive the year, and he willingly lays the responsibility for their good fortune in the hands of God rather than his own. Enthralling and superbly written, 1776 is the work of a master historian. --Shawn Carkonen The Other 1776
The Essential David McCullough More Reading on the Revolution (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:17 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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With his riveting, enlightening accounts of subjects from Johnstown Flood to John Adams, David McCullough has become the historian that Americans look to most to tell us our own story. In his Amazon.com interview, McCullough explains why he turned in his new book from the political battles of the Revolution to the battles on the ground, and he marvels at some of his favorite young citizen soldiers who fought alongside the remarkable General Washington. 
