At last, an American history about working Americans: what they thought, what they did, what happened to them. Volume One takes us from conquest and colonization through industrial expansion, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the Great Uprising of 1877
Who Built America? is a comprehensive, widely sourced reference work that tackles the story of the actual building of America and our cities, commerce/industries, and infrastructures. Clark and Hewitt give full attention to the groups of people who labored to do so: native Americans, women and children, minorities, and immigrants are fully credited. A useful feature is the summary chronology and suggested complementary readings at the end of each chapter. Who Built America? is a go-to reference for any serious student of American history. Volume Two, covering the Reconstruction through the end of the 20th century, is an equally appealing component of this series published by the American Social History Project, City University of New York. This edition was written by Christopher Clark and Nancy A. Hewitt, based on the original edition written by Levine, Brier, Brundage, Countryman, Fennel, and Rediker. Read more of my book reviews and poems here: www.richardsubber.com
Boasting a fantastic selection of primary sources (the images, in particular, are tremendous--WBA's graphic design editors deserve hearty applause for their good work) as well as top-notch historical analysis, Vol. 1 of this series is even better than Vol. 2. Although some of the early chapters proved a bit too dense and information-packed for my less committed students, I'd recommend this book to other instructors who have been assigned to teach the first half of the US history survey.
This is one of the best American history books out there. It shows the middle and lower classes more then the upper class as the lower classes are the ones that built America