Customer Reviews

A History of US (10 Vol. Set)

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

Joy Hakim has accomplished something close to impossible: a readable, thoughtful, even-handed narrative of American history, from the pre-Columbians to the end of the Cold War. The book is fun to read. Hakim tells her stories without stuffiness, pomposity, or self-rightreousness -- and she tells hundreds of stories! Illustrations are almost all from the period being discussed. Marginal comments explain difficult words and concepts. Sidebars print excerpts from diaries, speeches, letters, literature and histories of the time. Hakim relies heavily on biography and anecdote to convey a sense of the times she discusses. She manages to convey a sense of enthusiasm for this country throughout her warts-and-all account of its history. Periodically, she stops to discuss how historians know what they know and to encourage her readers to arrive at their own evaluations. My wife and I started reading this series to our son when he was eight years old. We marvelled at how well it communicated history and its lessons (clear and ambiguous, simple and complex) to him. We found ourselves wishing we'd had books like these when we were first learning U.S. history

A year ago, on the recommendation of others, I invested in this eleven-volume set. Over the course of the past year, my ten-year-old son and I have read through the entire series together. What a remarkable adventure of discovery, for both of us.

The benefits my son has gained from this exposure to the people and principles that have made up our country's history are impressive. (We homeschool, so this was his first in-depth exposure to the whole survey of American history.) In addition to having a broad sweep of the contours of history, he also has come to appreciate many of the core values that our country was founded upon. All I need to do is to say "We hold these truths to be self-evident," and he chimes in with the next several lines from the Declaration of Independence. He has gained an appreciation of the Constitution and Bill of Rights (and knows which powers of government belong to which governmental branches). He can recognize, and quote portions of, the Gettysburg Address. He has learned about people like Patrick Henry, Sojourner Truth, John F. Kennedy, and a multitude of others who have stood up for human liberty and dignity. Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King became three of his heroes. He has come to appreciate the rich history our country has -- and how we have never yet, in all our history, truly lived up to the values that we aspire to, and how that process needs to be ongoing.

Along the journey, we have been inspired to do more learning. We took a trip to Virginia and visited Monticello, the fascinating home of Thomas Jefferson. We watched the movie "1776" and talked about the differences between the movie and what actually happened. We explored catacombs of a church that was a station on the Underground Railroad. We took three trips to Antietam, exploring together what it might have felt like to be there in the midst of that climactic battle. We watched an online video of MLK giving his "I Have a Dream Speech," and during a recent trip to Washington, we noticed the spot at the Lincoln Memorial where he stood and where, engraved in the marble, you can see a commemoration of that event. We visited the World War II memorial and remembered Pearl Harbor. We stared at the names engraved on the Vietnam War Memorial and talked about a friend of ours who escaped, with her family, from Vietnam during the boat lift. We read about more recent events -- events that I remember -- including the Iran hostage crisis, the explosion of the Challenger, the advent of the personal computer, the signing of the INF, the end of the cold war, the 2000 election, and others -- and incorporated my memories into the story that was unfolding in the pages we were reading.

In short, this series of books helped history to come to life in our family. My son has come to claim his identity as a citizen of a country that stands for certain values and that has a long ways to go to fully attaining those values.

And then, there's what this series did for me. I went through public school. I memorized all sorts of basic facts about history. I had one really amazing high school teacher who helped me to understand and appreciate the significance of contemporary world events (right during the time when communism was collapsing). I had some great history courses while in college. But somehow -- even with all of that -- I realized, as I read through this series (designed for young readers!), that there was an awful lot I didn't know. I didn't know about Las Casas. I hadn't thought about the paradox that it was slave-holding Virginians who thought and wrote most about freedom. I didn't know much about the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, or the Alien and Sedition Acts. I had never heard of Red Jacket. I had never understood the significance of the debates between Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, and Daniel Webster. I had never heard of the Amistad. I didn't know beans about Congressional Reconstruction. I had never heard of the amazing story behind Yick Wo vs. Hopkins. I didn't know, or didn't care, about the Muckrakers. And as my son and I moved into the twentieth century -- as we moved into territory that was more familiar to me -- I found myself appreciating this history in a way I never had before. I found myself constantly imagining, "What would it have been like to have lived in those times?" I was constantly marveling at the bravery and courage of people, in the past, who stood up for what was good and true and right, and at what that sometimes cost them. In short, I was inspired.

And I wept. Volume 10 (1945-2001) is worth reading all by itself. I dare you to read it and not be moved.

If you're looking for a good resource for children and youth to explore history and have it come to life, this is for you. If you're an adult and want to appreciate our history all over again -- and in a whole new light -- step into the pages of these books.

Some reviewers suggest that the series is too biased to be useful. Is it biased? Yes, absolutely. Hakim makes her bias quite evident: she believes that our nation was founded on certain principles, and that time and again we have failed to live up to them. Does the presence of this bias hurt the series? I say, "No." On the contrary, I think it enhances the series. The way she constantly reminds the reader of the founding documents of this country -- and other documents that stand in that tradition -- constantly make the reader ask: "Are we really living up to our country's potential?" Most of the time, the answer is no, not by a long shot.

Are there problems here and there? Sure. There were times when things were vague and I had to do a bit of extra explaining. There were times when Hakim would introduce technical terms without explaining what they mean. There were times when the significance of a particular event was unclear. There were times when portions of history are brushed away (her discussion of the Revolutionary War, for example, focuses much more on social realities than on military battles; and the Articles of Confederation are skipped over pretty quickly). Is any of this problematic? Well, I'm of the opinion that one has to start somewhere. My son will keep learning and growing throughout his life (and so will I!). He'll learn about stuff that didn't make it into these pages. He'll discover that other people have different opinions than Hakim does. He may come to question some of her conclusions. But does he now have a good understanding of the broad outlines of American history? Of course. Does he understand why our country was created and what a number of major historical figures think our country stands for? Yes, absolutely. Does he understand how our government works (including judicial process)? Yes, to a remarkable degree. Is he now totally hooked on history? You bet. Was it worth it? Absolutely. Was it fun and rewarding for both of us? Without question.

The question I am left with, at the end of this year-long adventure, is this: where can I find a history of the world that is filled with as much passion, as many pictures, as many quotations, as many stories of the lives of ordinary people, and as accessible to young readers, as this series is?

My son and I read through the entire series of books, but skipped most of the sidebars. He is now a confirmed history nut, and I learned many things. We both had a wonderful ride: when my son was asked to bring in his favorite thing for a class picture sesion, he brought one of these volumes. There are a good many facts, set pieces, thumbnail biographical sketches, but the focus is on the highlights, especially as they illustrate the few basic themes that underly who we are. The manner in which these themes recur throughout the series reinforces them and ties everything together. Reductionist yes, but on target for the audience. I was impressed with the evenhanded interpretation of difficult events and people, and ended up feeling strongly that this is the way I want my children to understand our past.

One of those "children's" books you will be reading to yourself after the children are asleep.

I first heard about these books through an interview with the author on NPR. I was impressed by how she worked extensively with children to learn what interested them, what worked in telling these stories, and most significantly, her obvious respect for her audience (a pathetically rare quality in K-12 texts). These books communicate effectively to my children (10 and 13) without compromising the complexity, harshness, beauty, and vitality of history. Many "imagine you were..." type examples help put the reader into the history of our nation.

I bought one in the series and am now buying the rest.

A thought provoking journey through pre-history to the present. Ms Hakim has done an outstanding job pulling together a very readable story of the United States. My 10 year old promptly took possession of book 2 and reads a couple of chapters each night. (I had already appropriated book 1). On more than one occasion I have found her reading this book after "lights out".

The chapters are bite-sized; presenting an idea, concept or event in a way that makes it easy to get your arms around. The story proceeds basically chronologically, but can be read in any order without loss of enjoyment or knowledge transfer. The vocabulary & writing style is comfortable for middle school - while still engaging for me as an adult.

Book 11 contains an amazing collection of some of the great source documents that are important to our country.

The author presents the good, the bad, and the ugly of our history fairly (I think). She differentiates between fact, opinion and supposition and constantly challenges the reader to think about what they are reading.

I am pleased with these books, and hope that 13 years from now when my last child is college-bound they will be dog-earred and marked up from school projects and idle-time reading. Early indications are that I won't be disappointed.

Ms. Hakim's History of Us collection is what first nurtured my now overwhelming love for history. A rich interpretation of American history, each book presents a new time period in a child-friendly chronological format consisting of brief, focused chapters with sidebars and insets adding definitions, quotes, speeches, letters, diary excerpts, and other documents as deemed appropriate. Fact is set apart from the opinions of historians and the author as thought-provoking questions abound, and everything is retold in such a way that you can imagine being an unsuspecting "fly on the wall" as the events that have shaped our country unfold.

Critical parents and educators alike may look down on the politically correct atmosphere the series holds and the biased opinions the author sometimes presents, but the story-telling quality these books possess will have even the most uninterested child turning pages and retaining what is a sometimes excessively brief look into American history. I would recommend this as a great starter course in U.S. history for children of elementary and middle school age, but would most certainly progress into more information-heavy books in hopes that the reader's own independent opinions will not be formed from only what Ms. Hakim shares within her unique interpretations.

These are the most interesting books on American History that I have ever read. I hunted everywhere for history books that would be informative without being dry, and these fit the bill. The only negative things I can say about the books are the "politically correct--isms" found throughout the volumes, and the hurtful attack on Mormonism, brief though it was, it was unnecessary and unkind. Still, overall, these are great books and I only wish that she would write some World History books next!

I bought the 10 volume hard-cover series about 2 years ago when it was "on sale" through a childrens book of the month club. I thought it would make a good reference series for my then 8 year old child. I picked up the first volume, just to see what it was like. One summer and 2000 pages later I had finished the whole series. It was terrific. If I had learned history this way as I child I would have thought the subject fascinating! Every parent should introduce this series to their local schools. It's full of readable stories that bring history alive for children. My personal favorite was the chapter on Frank Baum, considered a failure...that is until he wrote and published The Wizard of Oz.

I teach 6th and 7th graders US History and they (and I) LOVE these books. I can't tell you how many times students read through them ahead of the class and then ask for the next one, too. Students who don't do well in other classes read these books. One of the things I like very much about them is that they teach children to think for themselves. They are not for people who want children to follow any certain political agenda - they are too open. They are so interesting that they give children the desire to find out more about what they have read. Joy Hakim does believe certain things but she always makes it clear that it's what she thinks based on her vast knowledge of history (I have noticed that some people who don't like this book think they know history but should really read more - their comments are not accurate). There are a lot of textbooks out there with a covert agenda - Joy Hakim simply says when it is her viewpoint. For example, I like John Adams a lot but she seems to prefer Thomas Jefferson - That's okay because I'm a teacher and I tell the students what I think, too. I put things in context - that's my job. I teach them to understand that research could yet again change our understanding of what happened - that nothing is finite. This frees them to find out more and finding out more encourages them to think for themselves. Something we badly need in a democracy. My students love these books - and I do, too. Any other textbook I have researched for my classes is dry and boring. They even put terms in bold - that drives me nuts. Kids just copy the definitions with no understanding. In Joy Hakim's books, very often the students have to figure out the meaning from the context. At first, they can't do this - they hate it because they are afraid they can't figure it out. Within 5 or 6 months, my 6th graders become very good at thinking this out for themselves. It's good for their self-esteem and this ability will stay with them all of their lives. It's more work for me as a teacher, but guess what! I teach them for life - not just to be ready for groupthink tests.

I have read the whole books of this series. The whole books consist of approximately 1850 pages not including table of contents and appendixes. Very few authors managed to write history book without putting the reader to sleep. Joy Hakim is one of the few. The author explained the history of the United States by telling stories. From the first Native Americans who crossed the Bering Sea a few thousands years ago to 2000 Presidential Election Fiasco. The book emphasized on the civil right issue, which is justice and equal right for all Americans, regardless of the race. Overall, this is a very good and entertaining book on the history of the United States. However, the author judgemental opinion on some of the political figures may trouble some. It didn't trouble me since I am a liberal and so does the author, but if you are a conservative you may not like to read this book.