A People's History of American Empire (American Empire Project) (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 10 Up–A study of empire-building by established politicians and big businesses from the 1890 Massacre at Wounded Knee through the current Iraq war. As nonfiction sequential art narrative, this stellar volume is compelling both as historical interpretation and you-are-there observation during many eras and in many climes. Konopacki melds realistic and energetic cartoons–Zinn lecturing in the present day, American and Vietnamese soldiers in the jungle, the Shah of Iran's White Revolution–with archival photos and document scraps to create a highly textured visual presentation. Each episode has its own period-specific narrator: Woody Guthrie sings about the Ludlow Massacre, a zoot suiter recounts the convergence of racial politics with popular music, and Zinn remembers his class-conscious boyhood through World War II soldiering and activism undertaken as a Civil Rights-era college professor. Politically charged, this book can't stand alone as a history text, but it is an essential component for contemporary American government education, as well as an easy work to suggest to both narrative nonfiction and sophisticated comics readers.–Francisca Goldsmith, Halifax Public Libraries, Nova Scotia
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

In addition to publishing the collected works of master cartoonists of the past, such as Krazy Kat creator George Herriman, Fantagraphics has a flair for discovering and collecting artists whose visions are a tad twisted. Case in point: Kerschbaum, whose hilarious and grotesque vignettes featuring Petey and Pussy, a mischievous dog and cat sporting bald-pated human heads. When Petey isn’t busy pursuing female canines, or Pussy isn’t harassing the mouse living behind his parlor wall, the pair are usually seen together quaffing cocktails at the local bar or getting into some form of mischief involving Pussy’s elderly owner and her demented pet parrot, Bernie. In one episode, the two battle a neighbor’s renegade boa constrictor and rescue Bernie from the snake’s innards with a convenient carving knife. In another, Petey helps Pussy replace his lost spectacles with a pair of horn-rims filched from a nearby nursing-home resident. Readers are advised to avoid eating while reading or risk choking during the inevitable and frequent guffaws. --Carl Hays --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Metropolitan Books (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805087443
• ISBN-13: 978-0805087444
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #8,882 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

94 of 115 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Propagating truth, April 4, 2008

By	Kerry Walters (Lewisburg, PA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The word "propaganda" has an almost universally negative connotation. Whenever we use it, we generally mean to refer to systematic and deliberate misinformation. But it's worth remembering that the word is etymologically derived from the same root as the word "propagate," to increase or grow. Propaganda, as the word was originally used, is simply a means of spreading the news, of getting the word out to large numbers of people, of disseminating information that needs to be disseminated.

It's in this original sense of the word that A People's History of American Empire is propaganda. Using the medium of the comix or graphic novel, Howard Zinn, Mike Konopacki, and Paul Buhle get the word out about a side of U.S. history that almost never gets taught in public schools, and about which many Americans even today remain clueless. Their treatment is entertaining and accessible--which means that it has a potentially huge audience--but neither patronizing nor simplistic--the book contains an extensive bibliography, and references both graphics and narrative claims. It's ideal for folks who have neither the time nor inclination to read Zinn's bulky classic A People's History of the United States, from which much of the volume is mined.

The format is ingenious. Zinn (wonderfully drawn, by the way) is the up-close narrator of the book. He begins by expressing bewilderment that the U.S. response to 9/11 has followed the same old violent pattern that the U.S. (and, of course, not only the U.S.) has typically adopted when threatened. This response, Zinn argues, ultimately only makes matters worse because it does nothing to get to the root causes of unrest. It is "an old way of thinking," one that tragically keeps following the same destructive script, and Zinn proceeds throughout the rest of the book to chronicle its many historical manifestations, ranging from the Wounded Knee massacre to the invasion of Cuba, Hawaii, the Philippines, and Central American nations such as El Salvador and Nicaragua (according to a list published by the State Department in 1962, the U.S. militarily intervened 103 times in foreign countries between 1798 and 1895). Zinn also discusses governmental and big business response to domestic workers' strikes (the Pullman strike and the Ludlow massacre, for example), and draws a connection between this "internal" imperialism and the "external" variety.

Of particular interest are Zinn's treatments of what he calls the "cool war," a culture and ethnic battle over black music in the 1950s, and the current Iraq War.

Another especially interesting feature of the book is its inclusion of Zinn's life story (derived from his autobiographical You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train) which traces his childhood poverty (and tenderness for his parents), his radicalization, his repudiation of violence following his service in World War II, his activism at Spelman College (which led to his dismissal), and his anti-war work--including the famous peace mission to Vietnam--during the Vietnam conflict.

Although the story of the insidious partnership between state and money is shocking and even horrifying at times, Zinn ends the book on an upbeat note. There's much to be hopeful about, he insists, when one considers the extraordinary achievements of the last fifty years. Legal racial apartheid in the U.S. was ended; the Vietnam war was stopped by public protests; velvet revolutions throughout Europe and South Africa succeeded in overthrowing tyranny in relatively bloodless fashion. So "to be hopeful in bad times is not foolishly romantic," Zinn concludes. "It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness" (p. 263).

Both of those messages deserve propagation.

19 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just another opinion . . . . . , August 21, 2008

By	Thirty Something "Mark" (Menlo Park) - See all my reviews

Love or hate it, this book is historically accurate and presents a viewpoint and perspective which is missing even from advanced college level American History courses. For that reason alone, Mr. Zinn must be given credit. Ultimately, politics is simply a matter of opinion -there is no right or wrong and this book (like all history books) is purely political.

Mr. Zinn's politics just happen to be skewed to the left, but there is plenty to learn from him nonetheless. Most importantly is that a citizen or resident of this country should understand that our tremendous standard of living and civil liberties (relative to other societies) we enjoy came about as a result of mixed laizez faire/central economic planning and empirialistic/oppressive actions of a global scale. There could not have been a U.S. absent the systemic annilihatiion of "native" americans (who themselves were imigrants) or various imperial battles and wars which ultimately left the U.S. as the world's only superpower (which status is currently being challenged by the economic emergence of China).

All empires end and history shows us that the formation of these empires tends to be much more benign and bloodless than when they fall apart. I for one do not wish me or my children to be alive when American empire disintigrates (as it most certainly will if action is not taken and which to a certain extent is happening presently).

This is a brilliant book for simply setting out the facts of American empirialism in an easy to read format (which necessarily leaves out alot of stuff). For those who are interested in a much more in depth view I highly recommend his full length novels (ironically one reviewer criticized this effort for lack of criticism of the Clinton administration - well butthead, he has a whole chapter on Clinton in his book and he's no less critical of Clinton than he is of Bush.)

Hopefully the conclusion you will come to (and a conclusion which probably requires a reading of his full length book) is that depending on your socio-economic status (and there are only two true classes in American society - the super wealthy (which includes most politicians as they must pander to this crowd in order to finance their campaigns) and everyone else) American empire either REALLY works for you or it simply works for you (i.e., you're in the top 1% of wage and income earners or you're not and since the standard of living of people at the lowest rung of American empire still have a standard far above similarly situated people anywhere else on the planet, generally speaking you're better off).

Ruling minority elites (both Democrats and Republicans) share power (and keep you under control) by creating class conflicts within the majority sub-class (i.e. anyone without true wealth) and pit those people against one another (i.e., the upper middle class against the lower middle or lower class) e.g. families making $50k/yr against those making $200k/yr in order to distract YOU from the fact that 1% of the population controls (and will continue to control) 40% of the resources. Historically when that didn't work, that societal energy is chanelled into policital "reforms" (by allowing minor changes in class structure and wealth distribution such as that brought about by the labor movement of the 30's or the civil rights movement of the 60's) or even better, into foreign wars where a common "enemy" is identified for everyone to be more concerned about (whether it be Indians, Mexicans, Germans, Communists or "Terrorists") while at the same time expanding U.S. empire and influence.

Democrat elites maintain power by pandering to their constituency as to how the need to raise taxes on their "wealthy" neighbors. Republican elites do it by pandering in the reverse: your middle class "wealth" will be further reduced if you let the Democrats in - i.e, Republican's are the only people who can keep the flood to a trickle and vice versa, Democrats are the only way the lower class can get resources and assistance - which is complete b.s. Of course, neither party addresses or wants to advocate serious corporate and true wealth taxation and redistribution or comprehensive immigration reform, because that would be inconsistent with the agendas of those who keep them in power and donate to their campaigns and ultimately Zinn's teachings show us is that American emperialism has basically benefitted this minority class of society (anybody can join this class btw - you just have to be either really lucky, really smart, really talented or have parents that were - usually it's a combination of the four).

Once you come to this understanding (and you probably cannot without the benefit of Zinn's teachings which also requires the reading of his full length book) you realize Zinn's ultimate conclusion (which, for whatever reason he keeps veiled - I think it's because he wants you to reach it yourself) which is that current American "Democracy" $%&$&$ sucks and is only truly benefitting a privileged few. He's basically advocating for the Democratic restructing of our society to wrest power and resources away from 1% of the population and distribute it more equally (which btw you have the power to do under our current system).

I think he's correct, because under the current state of affairs if the forced polarization of America (i.e., the falsely created class conflict of interest between middle and lower class) continues (which only benefits the corporate and political elites) it will end in a fairly messy way (as all societys and empire's that collapse do.) Let's begin the discussion and end it in an orderly fashion - getting an accurate understanding of the world you live in is the first step - Buy this book!

28 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant! The truth must be known!, April 5, 2008

By	B. B. Bridenbaugh "KingNot" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I just picked up this book today, and I don't often just start reading a book then buy it, but this one was well worth it. A brutal expose of the injustice going on in America, and perpetuated by it. Not just an expose of the "Rich Elite" and their hold on our supposed Democracy, but all those they've hurt to make an extra dishonest dollar as if they did not have enough already.