U.S. History For Dummies [Paperback]

Steve Wiegand (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0470436395 | ISBN-13: 978-0470436394 | Publication Date: June 2, 2009 | Edition: 2

Now revised — the easy-to-understand guide to the story of America

Want to better understand U.S. History? This friendly book serves as your tour guide through the important events of America's past and present, introducing you to the people who helped to shape history. From pre-Columbus to the American Revolution, from Watergate to Iraq to Barack Obama, you'll discover fascinating details that you won't find in dry history texts!

• They're coming to America — explore early civilizations, meet Native Americans, and see how the development of the English colonies led to slavery and the American Revolution

• From Thomas Jefferson to Abraham Lincoln — examine the contributions of great Americans as well as the discovery of gold, the birth of California, the Civil War, and Manifest Destiny

• America grows up — be there during the conquering of the West, industrial development, and the invention of the light bulb and the telephone

• The impact of the World Wars — understand the sweeping changes these epochal events brought to America and the rest of the world

• The Cold War, Camelot, and Clinton — take a closer look at the Korean War and communism, the fabulous '50s, JFK, Vietnam, Nixon and Watergate, Reaganomics, and the Clinton years

• From the '90s to now — witness the birth of the microchip, the impact of hanging chads in a presidential election, the largest terrorist attack on American soil, and the growing economic crisis

Open the book and find:

• Ten important events that defined American culture

• Interesting Americans, from presidents to gangsters to sports heroes

• How America fought to win independence from England

• Details about all the major wars and their long-term effects

• Insight into the roots of slavery

• Inventions that changed life for Americans

• The impact of the atomic bomb

• The Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Filled with fascinating trivia and lore not found in textbooks

People, places, and dates with a dash of fun — history will never be the same! Don't know much about history? Don't worry! With this friendly reference, you can bone up on all those facts you missed in history class — and have a good time in the bargain. From the Revolution to the Civil War, from the Great Depression to the Cold War, this is history the way it ought to be — fresh, memorable, and fun.

Discover how to: Astound friends with fun facts about the Founding Fathers Understand terms like "Manifest Destiny" Get a grip on the legacy of slavery Impress your family with Civil War lore Put current events in historical context

The Dummies Way^™ Explanations in plain English "Get in, get out" information Icons and other navigational aids Tear-out cheat sheet Top ten lists A dash of humor and fun

Get smart! www.dummies.com Register to win cool prizes Browse exclusive articles and excerpts Get a free Dummies Daily^™ e-mail newsletter Chat with authors and preview other books Talk to us, ask questions, get answers --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Steve Wiegand is an award-winning political journalist and history writer. He currently writes a thrice-weekly political column for the Sacramento Bee.

Product Details

• Paperback: 408 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 2 edition (June 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470436395
• ISBN-13: 978-0470436394
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.8 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #24,356 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Steve Wiegand has been an award-winning political journalist and history writer for more than three decades. His newspaper career has included stints at the San Diego Evening Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, and Sacramento Bee.

A lifelong resident of California, Wiegand is a graduate of Santa Clara University, and holds a Master of Science degree in Mass Communications from California State University, San Jose.

He is the author of U.S. History for Dummies, Lessons from the Great Depression for Dummies, Papers of Permanence and Sacramento Tapestry, co-author of The Mental_Floss History of the World and a contributing author to Mental_Floss Presents Forbidden Knowledge.

He lives in Northern California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

154 of 179 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars History for Biased Readers Only, August 12, 2005

By 

Mary (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: U.S. History for Dummies (Paperback)

You should only buy this book if you're actually hoping for a far-left opinion piece rather than a book on U.S. history. I expect some bias to seep through in a history book - we are all human beings and we all process information through our personal filters despite our best efforts at objectivity. But a historian should make an effort at objectivity. I bought the book in hopes of filling in gaps that I have in my knowledge of U.S. history but I felt so manipulated by the author's deliberate leanings when I read about incidents that were familiar that I felt I couldn't trust him on his coverage of facts that were unfamiliar. Moreover, I was very confused by events he chose to cover versus events he chose not to cover. For example, he devotes almost half a page to Muhammad Ali, but does not mention Jesse Owens at all. Ali was certainly famous and was a fantastic boxer, but I'm not sure how he affected U.S. history one way or the other. Jesse Owens on the other hand affected with his athletic abilities not only U.S. history but world history, proving to the world on Hitler's own turf that Nazi theories on race were absolute lies. He states that during WWII, the U.S. downplayed the horror of the Holocaust (which is certainly true), but never once mentions the U.S. relationship with Israel. In fact, he never mentions Israel at all. He does not mention that the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan or President Carter's response to the invasion. At the end of the book, the author lists "ten inventions that changed life as we know it," and he lists things like the safety pin, the remote control, the brassiere, and post-it notes, but not inventions such as the lightbulb, the telephone, the airplane. A blatant example of the author's political bias is his coverage of Reagan's presidency. According to the author, the only people who voted for President Reagan were racists, money-grubbers and far-right Christians. He never mentions Reagan's anti-Communist stance, nor does he mention that Reagan won by two landslide elections or the unprecedented number of Democrats who voted for him. He never mentions Reagan's meeting with Gorbachev at Reykjavik, the "tear down this wall" speech, the treaties he reached with Gorbachev to reduce arms, or the fact that many credit him with winning the Cold War. Whatever you think of these events, you cannot omit them from coverage on Reagan's presidency and be considered a serious historian. (The author does however describe Gorbachev as "a remarkable man.") I am certain that the author loves history and knows a great deal about it, but his talents would be put to better use in political campaign management.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Refresher, August 30, 2005

By 

Lilac (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: U.S. History for Dummies (Paperback)

Yes, here I am...boning up on American history that I should have remembered. I just wanted an overview and I got that and more. Wiegand paints US history in bold, clear strokes and highlights humorous and interesting details.

27 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars US History: Facts and Humor, November 26, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: U.S. History for Dummies (Paperback)

I found this book to be a great refresher for all of the facts I had learned about US History in high school and had since forgotten. Even more importantly, I learned a lot of details not generally included in the names, dates, just-the-facts ma'am genre of most history textbooks. The book is well organized and it is easy to locate information about a specific period of time if you are just flipping through. The humorous and conversational style also make this book great to read cover to cover without feeling like you have to take a test afterward. I would recommend this book to any student needing to supplement their in-class learning and any adult looking to expand their knowledge a bit. I find it refreshing that Wiegand couples his facts with distinct opinions. It is widely known that it is impossible to write about anything, including history, with complete objectivity. The style in which this book is written is not hiding anything and it's a great resource whether you agree with the author's political commentary or not!