A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present (P.S.) | Howard Zinn

A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present (P.S.) | Howard Zinn | a much-needed supplement

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A People's History...

	A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present (P.S.) Howard Zinn Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2005 - 768 pages average customer review:based on 638 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Absolutely the BEST

The one history of the United States absolutely every person who cares about this country should read. Mandatory.

a much-needed supplement

I wish I had had access to this book decades ago. I am 58 now. I just finished reading it this evening. I had my impression of American history based on inoffensive and boring texts in high school; books that basically suggested Americans were the good guys at all times and in all places. That naivete nearly got me killed. If I had had some real sense of perspective on how and why America went to war I might not have joined the Marines during the Vietnam era. I really believed then that if Our Government took military action then it must have a darn good reason. I was just young, poor, and blindly ignorant, but with a genuine desire to do the right thing. I was just lucky that I was never sent to Vietnam. Most of my fellow Marines were and many did not return. It took me many years of reading, newscasts, and reflection to finally realize that My Government not infreqently engages in outright criminal behavior followed by lies and deceit at its highest levels to cover up the crimes. Reading Dr. Zinn's book just clarified and organized the picture more completely. It's an extremely valuable supplement to mainstream histories; one every student should be encouraged to read. Here is where the word "education" takes on a profound meaning. Zinn's book serves to "educate" us in a true sense by showing us an alternative way to think about our culture and its effect on the world. Whenever someone can stimulate you to think more clearly about things that are important--that's education. Anyone who reads this book carefully and reflects on its contents is far less likely to be "had" by a politician or a political party. And it provides hope; there actually were very large and successful strikes, social movements and mass resistance to government policies in our history. Until I read Dr. Zinn's book I hadn't really known that; in fact, there were a great many significant events that I had never heard about.

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good gift

was a great gift for your history buff. A major hit. Will buy additional copies for other "buffs" when their special days approach.

Future History teacher

I bought this for my son for Christmas. He will be student teaching in the fall and will be teaching history. His professor told him this is the best book he could read for facts on the History of the United States. He was so excited when he opened it and I am so glad that Amazon offered it for purchase. I wouldn't look anywhere else for books!

Broad, yet compelling

Howard Zinn seeks to explain all of United States history through a Marxist perspective in which the ruling classes dominate the proletariat. If this doesn't sound interesting to you, I would recommend buying another book.

I believe Zinn's analysis does have something important to offer a student of American history. He explores little known and frequently disregarded aspects of the American experience.

The only criticism I have of this work is that, since it covers more than half a millenia of history in one volume, it can be a little overwhelming. Perhaps a less ambitious focus, say of a hundred years, could offer more in depth coverage of the events and personalities involved. By necessity, Zinn works rather quickly in such an ambitious work that seeks to desribe all of American history in only 682 pages.

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