The Creation of the American Republic, 1776-1787

One of the best books on American government I've ever read. This was not exactly a school book, but one of my teachers kept recommending it so frequently and so heartily that I had to give it a try, even if its not exactly in my field. He was right. It is just an amazing piece of work. It's an intell......more

This was not a "book" so much as a collage of artfully strung together phrase-length quotations -- sort of like if you asked to guy who wrote the restaurant reviews for Zagats to write about the intellectual history of the American Revolution. "I liked the 'balance of power' and 'the lack of a hered......more

Sweeping, lucid, and magnificent, but not for the faint of heart. I read every page of this 615-page behemoth, and I feel like I deserve a cookie. This is an intellectual history of the evolution of the ideas that were debated and thrown into the blender of the Constitutional Convention. Why is ther......more

According to author Wood, the inauguration of the American revolution antedates July 4, 1776. It begins with the instruction of the Continental Congress to the colonies to rewrite their constitutions. This book traces that process from 1776 through 1787 as regards, first, the colonies (inclusive of......more

I read this as part of my studying for the general exams I took for my doctorate in history. Wood does an incredible job of explaining what the founders' really believed and what the Constitution really means. Everyone should read this classic, especially those Tea Party types who need in a good les......more