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259 of 290 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Should Have Stopped With 1960, January 9, 2000
I find it very disappointing that most people have a kneejerk reaction to Paul Johnson. It seems as though if you are a conservative you love him and if you are a liberal you hate him. I find this very unfair. Mr. Johnson is always entertaining and frequently thought provoking. After reading this book I have already bought biographies of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Edison because Mr. Johnson has brought them to life and has caused me to want to learn more about them. For example, did you know that Mr. Edison would frequently sleep under the table in his workshop so as to be able to go right back to work when he woke up? Or that Calvin Coolidge once summoned some of his staff in the White House and then hid under his desk so that they couldn't find him? But this doesn't mean that this book is full of fluff either. Mr. Johnson also gives you much "straight" history and is not afraid to give you his opinions of the people and their policies. He clearly thinks that Jefferson, FDR and John Kennedy were overrated and Coolidge underrated, for example. He greatly admires Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan. Probably one of the great lessons of this book is that some distance is needed before a person or an event can be judged fairly. Years ago one heard almost only positive things about Thomas Jefferson. In recent years the pendulum has somewhat swung the other way especially where Jefferson's writings on slavery are now seen to diverge quite a bit from his practices in real life. But the beauty of this book lies in the uncovering of personality. We also learn that Jefferson had no sense of humor and that though he was a compulsive record keeper and wrote down everything that he bought and sold he had absolutely no idea of his financial situation, which was always getting worse, throughout his life. He liked to present himself as a common farmer but spent vast sums on fine wines and fancy clothes. He was a compulsive book buyer. He tended to get migraines when under pressure. He was a minimalist as far as believing in the power of the national government but did not hesitate to make the Louisiana Purchase. In short, like all interesting people he was inconsistent and quirky. I have dwelled on Jefferson but Mr. Johnson brings numerous historical figures to life in the same way. I found the last 100 pages of the book disappointing in its handling of events since 1960. I understand that many negative things about JFK have come to light in the last 20 years or so but Mr. Johnson has nothing positive at all to say about him. The space program, for example, is not shown in a positive light at all but as a Kennedy obsession about "competing" and "having to win". Likewise, Mr. Johnson has nothing to say about the serious personal flaws in the personality of Richard Nixon. It is clear that Mr. Nixon throughout his life got a very unfair deal from a lot of the press but is it not true that he was a bit paranoid about his perceived enemies and therefore worsened the situation? Mr. Johnson states as a blanket fact that Mr. Nixon knew nothing of the Watergate break-in beforehand. This is possible, but then Mr. Johnson has nothing at all to say about the coverup, which Nixon clearly did know about. The job of the historian is to present all sides of an issue and not to ignore unpleasant facts that do not support what you are trying to prove. It is also curious that Mr. Johnson makes no attempt to analyze whether or not the U.S. should ever have been in Vietnam. He faults the politicians for not listening to the military in saying that an all-out massive effort was needed or the war could not be won. In short, more discussion of both sides of the issue was needed. But if you forget the last 40 years or so, the bulk of this book is excellent.
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89 of 100 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great corrective to what's out there, August 19, 2006
While I wouldn't recommend that my students read only Paul Johnson's work on US History, I would definitely recommend that they read it in accompaniment to their texts. Johnson is rightly to be credited for providing a more balanced and optimistic view of the American people/government than is prevalent in the majority of publishing firms today. He does not shy away from criticism where it is due, but neither is he afraid to assert honor where honor is due--even if it means offending some politically correct ears.
While I agree that he can be classified as a conservative, I would also note that this is not a "conservative's conservative" book. By that I mean that people who are unabashedly Republican, Religious Right, etc., will not find unscrutinized support for their revisionist accounts of history. While Johnson does overlap with certain conservative appraisals of historical events and figures, he does so on a case-by-case basis, always aiming to support his evaluations with fact. In many instances, these facts are not widely known because they have been cut out from liberal textbooks. They are not, however, smelling of the party line.
Indeed, Johnson's book is fascinating for his historical scholarship, research, and deep analysis. His coverage of "forgotten" spans of time (i.e. Grant, Arthur, Hayes, Garfield) is welcome, as is his deft treatment of figures who are normally expansive in coverage (i.e. Lincoln, JFK). I found the 1860-1900 chapters to be personally most enlightening.
Johnson is especially great at noticing overarching themes in government and economic life. He is not a social or sociological commentator, which will relieve some of his more liberal readers. And in fact, I believe most people--liberal or conservatve--would gain an awful lot from his research and presentation if they read with an open mind.
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44 of 51 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very comprehensive yet very readable, October 14, 1999
First, I agree with an earlier reviewer who pointed out errors. As a Civil War buff, I also noticed that Johnson confused generals Albert Sidney Johnston and Joseph Johnston. Also, although extremely comprehensive, the book was not thorough on military history. However, the book covers political, social, economic, and religious history so well that there was little room for the history of great battles. One military campaign I thought he covered particularly well, however, is the Tet offensive which he pointed out was a tactical military victory turned into a defeat by a hostile press. Johnson has a very clear political point of view. That's OK, however, since he thoroughly and (for the most part) accurately covers historical events. Two examples of great in depth coverage are first: his treatment of the Great Awakening in the colonial period. This religious history far exceeds that of most (if not all) one volume surveys of American history. Secondly: Johnson provides a great survey of Black popular contributions to culture in the development of ragtime and jazz. Despite his almost unforgiveable "Johnston" error, I rate this book highly and recommend it without qualification.
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