Books 1776
Books and Publications Average Rating:

Rating: - never received item
I ordered the book 1776 over 6 weeks ago and never received it. My child needs this book for a class beginning in January and I fully do not expect her to have it.

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Rating: - A story every American should read
I've had a few of McCullough's books on my shelves for a long time. I've always been well-intent on reading most of his books. But this is actually the first of his books I've actually read. And it was quite an incredible book. This covers the events of the Revolutionary War during 1776, which despite the bold Declaration of Independence and its glorification in history was anything but a positive year for the American colonies.

1776 was a hard year, especially for George Washington, who struggled to keep his army from disintegrating from desertions and expiring enlistments, and suffered defeat after defeat at the hands of the British army. McCullough follows the Continental Army from the siege of Boston, through the invasion of New York, the retreat through New Jersey, and finishes with Washington's bold Christmas Eve attack across the Delaware River on the Hessians camped in Trenton.

This book is eye-opening to the reality of just how close Washington and his army came to losing the war. For any not inclined towards history books, keep in mind that McCullough is a storyteller, and one of the best there is.

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Rating: - Dramatic narrative of Washington's early campaigns
After enjoying McCullough's exceptional biography of John Adams, I purchased several more books by him including this one. I liked it very much, finding it both informative and entertaining. Essentially, the book describes the early campaigns of George Washington and his army from the time he took command of the Continental Army during the Siege of Boston in July, 1775 to the battles of Trenton and Princeton. The latter of these actually occurred on January 3rd, 1777.

This brings me to my only criticism of the book -- it's title. I sense that it was chosen by the publisher to cash in on the magic associated with that year. As indicated above, McCullough covers significant military events in 1775 and 1777. I also object to the title because McCullough in no way tries to give a comprehensive account of the key events of the American Revolution in 1776 as one might expect; for instance, he only refers tangentially to the Declaration of Independence, focusing on how it's announcement affected Washington and his troops. I think a better title would more clearly indicate McCullough's focus on the early maturation of General Washington and his army in their first year and a half of battle.

But aside from the title, this is an excellent book that is a great supplement to a broader history of the entire American Revolution such as Robert Middlekauff's "The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789". Broad surveys such as Middlekauff's cannot dedicate as much space to individual battles as a more specialized book like "1776" can. Reading at least one such book is valuable since it makes you realize how much more there is to learn after reading a single history of any particular war. Even if you're not obsessed with military history, I recommend this book to gain perspective and some useful insights into the development of George Washington's military skills.

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Rating: - Honest history
As a non-historian with only grade school memories of Washington pitching a silver dollar over some river, McCullough straightened out my ideas. THe actors in this grade A drama are surprisingly human, make mistakes and are occasionaly inspired and there are new names in the cast. Read this interesting book and then compare past with present history and heroes. No mention of any football player in this book!