First published 2004
American history education has spent three decades emphasizing national shame over national achievement. Students learn more about Harriet Tubman than Abraham Lincoln, more about My Lai than the American Revolution, more about Japanese American internment than Europe's liberation in World War II. History professors Larry Schweikart and Kevin Allen challenge this imbalanced approach with a comprehensive survey that restores America's role as a global beacon of freedom. Their narrative spans from Columbus's arrival through Saddam Hussein's capture, acknowledging national failures while placing them in proper context. The authors argue that American world leadership stems from the character of leaders who tamed the frontier, ended slavery, and defeated fascism and communism. Written in accessible prose, this book serves both students seeking complete historical perspective and adults wanting to discover what their education overlooked.
Genres: history, political-science, non-fiction, american-history
Vibes: thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-perspective
Setting: United States, My Lai, Europe
Period: 19th-century, 20th-century, 21st-century
960 pages · Hardcover · Sentinel HC