Rating: 
Summary: An impressive study and an easy read
Review: A huge book that traces the history of America from pre-Columbus through present day. Although considered by many to be a "text book" for study, it is not written in that format. It reads easily and clearly. It is non-biased and informative. The pictures are helpful. It's the first book on American history that I have been able to finish. Although expensive, I think that every book collection should have a copy and it is an essential part of any history collection.
Rating:
Summary: An impressive study and an easy read
Review: A huge book that traces the history of America from pre-Columbus through present day. Although considered by many to be a "text book" for study, it is not written in that format. It reads easily and clearly. It is non-biased and informative. The pictures are helpful. It's the first book on American history that I have been able to finish. Although expensive, I think that every book collection should have a copy and it is an essential part of any history collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting and boring
Review: As a U.S. History student, I can say that this book is immensely packed with information. One of the most in-depth history books I have ever read, it tells the complete truth instead of being neutral and politically correct. Because it contains so much detail (sometimes an unnecessary amount), it is difficult to get through the chapters which tend to be very long and hard to digest. It is challenging, most often informative, and all-together boring.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent and informative book.
Review: As an A-Level History student studying U.S. history, I have found this book invaluable in revision and essay writing. Information is easily accessed, and it is a concise and to-the-point text. Far better in many respects to Hugh Brogan's text, I would highly recommend it to all students.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book and resource
Review: I am a Political Science student, and used this text in A.P. U.S. History in high school. In high school I found that it is, as other reviewers have mentioned, not only packed with information, but occasionally recites short, funny stories and interesting tidbits not found in normal, dry history books. Today, as I do a lot of research and writing for Political Science, I find that I am constantly referring to it to look up all sorts of information listed in tables in the back or to read a paragraph about this or that. It is a wonderful text and a resource for any student in the Social Sciences, or anyone interested in America's history, particularly political history.
Rating: 
Summary: Reads like a text book
Review: I was dissappointed with the book. There's no in depth discussion on any event. It just reads on and states facts like those in High School text books. Didn't capture me at all.
Rating:
Summary: Reads like a text book
Review: I was dissappointed with the book. There's no in depth discussion on any event. It just reads on and states facts like those in High School text books. Didn't capture me at all.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Disappointing...Laughably Slanted Perspective
Review: I'd like to preface this review by stating that I'm a registered independent and have voted for both Republican and Democrat presidents. That being said, I found this book to be outrageously slanted; it was almost as if I was reading liberal propaganda. Wanting to read a detailed overview of American history, I decided upon this textbook due to the authors' reputation and the mostly positive reviews I'd previously read. Big mistake. While reading this book, I decided to start with the late 20th century (with which I was, of course, pretty familiar), to see how historically correct the authors' depiction of the facts were. I was EXTREMELY disappointed to say the least. Any policy or program which negatively influenced the power of labor unions, or didn't support causes such as welfare, affirmative action, feminism, etc. were consistently considered "bad" without any justification. For example, one passage included: "Many working mothers, however eager to be self-reliant, refused to penalize their children and returned to welfare full-time." Hmmm. Penalize their children by getting off welfare. Does that sound objective? When referring to Ronald Regan, they discussed his reputation as a "mental midget," and literally dismissed ALL of his accomplishments as "luck." For instance: "Reagan's luck returned, "Reagan's luck continued," "despite his mismanagement, Reagan's luck prevailed." Putting aside any opinions of Reagan, I think even the most anti-Reagan scholar could have found SOMETHING beneficial he did for the country. To the contrary, of course, all democratic presidents were portrayed almost as American "heroes," and dismissed all of their failures to external events or conservative influence. I was looking for an objective, scholarly discussion of American history - what I received was liberal propaganda without any rigorous analysis of the facts. I expected a small amount of bias, as nobody can be truly neutral, but the authors' didn't try and hide their serious liberal agenda. I was afraid to read the rest of the book, as I wouldn't be able to pick apart the bias in sections of American history I was less familiar with. Overall, I would recommend the "Penguin History of America" as an alternative to this textbook. I found it to be concise, scholarly, well-written, and containing no agenda (it's actually written by a British author). Don't waste your money on this one.
Rating:
Summary: THE BOOK for any AP US History exam
Review: My AP US History class used this book as its textbook. Statistics speak for themselves: anyone who read and studied the book got a 5! It is one of the most comprehensive texts in American history ever published. George Tindall, the primary author, is a wonderful and knowledgable man who I have met in Chapel Hill,NC. An excellent buy!
Rating:
Summary: THE BOOK for any AP US History exam
Review: My AP US History class used this book as its textbook. Statistics speak for themselves: anyone who read and studied the book got a 5! It is one of the most comprehensive texts in American history ever published. George Tindall, the primary author, is a wonderful and knowledgable man who I have met in Chapel Hill,NC. An excellent buy!
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