Don't Know Much About American History (Paperback)

by Kenneth C. Davis (Author), Matt Faulkner (Illustrator) "The answer is letter e..." (more)
Key Phrases: New York, Soviet Union, George Washington (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7-American history comes alive in this witty, yet informative account. Kenneth Davis (HarperCollins, 2003) explains complex issues like the controversy over slavery that led to the Civil War, the reasons for the Great Depression, and why terrorists would want to attack the United States on 9/11 in language that is easy for young people to understand. The narration by actor Oliver Wyman is broken up by the voices of three other actors who ask questions like: "How did Theodore Roosevelt get rid of 7,400 miles?" and "Were the Little Rock Nine a rock-and-roll band?" The narrative is also broken up by "American Voices," which include first-person accounts; American Portraits-brief biographies of noteworthy people, ranging from Harriet Tubman to Harry Houdini; Great American Pastimes, ranging from baseball to jazz; and American English, discussing how words became part of our language. Davis doesn't gloss over controversial parts of history, such as why not all Americans consider Columbus Day a holiday. and why the U.S. didn't do more to help prevent the Holocaust. He also addresses what our founding fathers meant when they said, "All men are created equal." As lively as this history book is, though, it's unlikely that young people will want to listen to it just for fun.
David Bilmes, Schaghticoke Middle School, New Milford, CT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review
"[Davis] steers an intelligent, non-partisan course through the thorny issues of the past." (USA Today )

"Put the zest back in history" (Washington Post Book World )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1 edition (April 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060840560
• ISBN-13: 978-0064408363
• ASIN: 0064408361
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #31,155 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Setting the story straight, March 16, 2004

By	Erika Mitchell (E. Calais, VT USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Don't Know Much About American History (Davis, Kenneth C. Don't Know Much.) (Audio Cassette)

This is a concise history of the United States, told from a decidedly liberal point of view. Davis begins his story with the various discoveries of America, informing us of Columbus motivations, Ericksons settlements, and the Native American migrations of 35,000 years ago. He continues with stories of the French and Indian Wars, the founding of the United States, the Civil War, Teddy Roosevelt, and the Twentieth Century events through the presidency of Ronald Reagan.

Each chapter begins with a list of questions on a given period of history. Then Davis begins describing what happened during this period, taking up and answering each question in turn. Starting with Teddy Roosevelt, Davis own political persuasion starts to come through more and more clearly. While I myself agree with Davis comments about FDR and Ronald Reagan, I think conservative readers might find some of them a bit objectionable. In general, I found this a very readable concise history of the United States, but its not for everyone.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read it for fun!, May 27, 2005

By	Olivia - See all my reviews

The book came with the Movie "National Treasure". The movie was...not bad. But I really enjoyed the book. I was foreign born and learned American History among other history classes in high school. I went on to write History study guides for students later on.
This book was excellent in that it is concise and entertaining. Captures my attention all the way through. It is a history book for Dummies and I very much appreciated the simplicity, key elements and the openess of the author.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Overview of American History, December 20, 2006

By	T. Carlsen - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The purpose of this book is to make history approachable to people who might not know much about history or may not like history, hence the name. This is a very good overview primarily aimed at older children.

It takes a non-confrontational and non-confrontational approach to history, which fits with the generally conservative nature of history in education today. There are no debates. For example, it explains that, while slavery a leading cause of the Civil war, it weakly says that many factors were involved. It says nothing of the clash over the issue of slavery expanion to the western territories and the brutal confrontations leading to war.

By the way, I looked at the picture mentioned in another review. It does appear that the picture may be mislabeled, but it is not certain. The picture is a group of Russians. The Russian man in the middle is wearing a white outfit with several Russian medals, and he is obviously a Russian leader, although he probably is not Stalin. The man to the far right, two men over, appears to be a younger Stalin.

This is maybe the best overview of American history for older children and adults who do not know much about history. Considering the target audience, the book is a success.