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James West Davidson

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Born

The United States

Genre

History

Member Since

January 2016

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James West Davidson is a historian, writer, and wilderness paddler. He received his Ph.D. in American history from Yale University and writes full time. He is also co-editor, with Michael Stoff, of New Narratives in American History, a series published by Oxford University Press, as well as the coauthor of textbooks in American history. These include "Experience History," "After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection," and "US: A Narrative History" for the college level and "The American Nation" for the middle grades. ...more

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James West Davidson’s books

Average rating: 3.98 · 3,283 ratings · 325 reviews · 164 distinct works • Similar authors

	A Little History of the United States 4.06 avg rating — 1,923 ratings — published 2015	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Great Heart: The History of a Labrador Adventure by James West Davidson (Goodreads Author), John Rugge 4.28 avg rating — 283 ratings — published 1988 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection by James West Davidson (Goodreads Author), Mark H. Lytle 3.95 avg rating — 296 ratings — published 1982 — 27 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection, Volume 1 by James West Davidson (Goodreads Author), Mark H. Lytle 3.84 avg rating — 147 ratings — published 1981 — 12 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	"They Say": Ida B. Wells and the Reconstruction of Race 3.78 avg rating — 114 ratings — published 2006 — 12 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Nation of Nations by James West Davidson (Goodreads Author), William E. Gienapp, Christine Leigh Heyrman 3.68 avg rating — 77 ratings — published 1981 — 56 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection Volume 2 by James West Davidson (Goodreads Author), Mark H. Lytle 3.75 avg rating — 67 ratings — published 1986 — 13 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Complete Wilderness Paddler 4.05 avg rating — 55 ratings — published 1975 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	U.S.: A Narrative History, Volume 2: Since 1865 by James West Davidson (Goodreads Author), Brian DeLay, Christine Leigh Heyrman 3.07 avg rating — 44 ratings — published 2008 — 21 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Nation of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Repulic, Vol. 2: Since 1865 by James West Davidson (Goodreads Author), Seth Weissman 3.37 avg rating — 38 ratings — published 1990 — 18 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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James Davidson made a comment on Lars Thorkildsen’s review of A Little History of the United States " I am the author; thank you for your kind words. As to the lack of footnotes, Yale's series is designed for a wide range of readers and footnotes are n ...more "
Sep 07, 2024 09:53AM · see review
James Davidson liked Radha Batata's review of A Little History of the United States: "5* Such a pleasure to read this book. I read Gombrich's A Little History of the World last year and loved his storytelling approach, so I was really happy to find it was part of a series. I dare say A Little History of the United States was even bette" Read more of this review »
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Quotes by James West Davidson (?)

“Ancient writers had told tales of a golden age before history, where “men lived simply and innocently”—no laws, no quarrels. The people on this island seemed to be folk from such a time. “They go as naked as when their mothers bore them,” Columbus reported, and were so meek and friendly, they were “ready to give the Christians all that they possess.”
― James West Davidson, A Little History of the United States

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“Jefferson said that if he were told he had to join a party in order to get into heaven, he wouldn’t go.”
― James West Davidson

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“But ideas are a bit like dandelions. Like a tiny seed clinging to an explorer’s boot, an idea can cross the Atlantic lodged in the back of someone’s head.”
― James West Davidson

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