The U.S. Constitution and Other Writings

by Editors Of Press (Editor)

“We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union . . . ” — The U.S Constitution

The U.S. Constitution and Other Writings is part of the Leather-bound Classics series and is a collection of the crucial documents, speeches, and other writings that shaped the United States. In addition to the Constitution, readers can review the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the Federalist Papers, important presidential speeches, and many others. Both famous and lesser-known, but equally important, Americans are represented, including Benjamin Franklin, Victoria Woodhull, Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, and even the creators of the rules of baseball. The founders' inspirational and revolutionary ideals are all here, and this is a perfect volume for anyone who finds the history of America to be a fascinating and enlightening journey.

Genres: History, Politics, Nonfiction, American History, Reference, Classics, Education

544 pages, Leather Bound

First published October 1, 2017

Reviews

[Dawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I wish it would have had Trump’s speech. It has Hilary Clinton’s speech she gave when Trump won in 2016, but not Trump’s speech. If it had had that, l would have given 5 stars.

[Jason · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is a joke. It includes Hillary Clinton's nomination speech but not Donald Trump's inauguration speech. Are you kidding me?! Huge disappointment. I can’t proudly display this book in my home (despite the fact its leather cover looks pretty good).

The introduction was written by a guy who doesn't respect the history of this country (which is odd for a book like this). I was expecting a little patriotism...or some reverence for the inspired documents that formed the greatest nation to ever exist.

Instead, he describes the constitution as a 250 year old, irrelevant document. He makes a silly comparison between two groups of people: "originalists" who respect the constitution and "non-originalists" those who don't...and treats non-originalists views as equally valid or more so than so-called originalists. Ugh...

I recently found another book called “The Constitution of the United States and selected writings of the Founding Fathers”. It looks better, has a better selection of writings, and wasn’t compiled by radical leftists. I highly recommend it.

[Gavin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a must read for historical junkies, specifically those interested in American history. It could definitely use more texts about more topics as the selection they have feels random and although arranged in chronological order they don't necessarily mesh together. The writings are all very important to U.S. history but they are missing some key writings, for example this book has no writings or speeches of MLK, specifically the I have a Dream speech. Overall this is a good book but jumping ahead multiple years to a totally different document can be jarring to the reader.

[Nathan Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

so cool! very useful as it just simply show all the important documents, treaties and major laws that are inacted over time. and of course inaugural addresses as well throughout US history from George Washington to Hillary Clinton.

[Jack Slater · Rating 1 out of 5]

DON'T BUY!!!
I made the mistake of purchasing this book after a brief scan of the table of contents. I saw quickly there was a noticeable slant to the choices of featured writings, but once I began reading, I realized there are blatant omissions. It's bad enough to omit a number of foundational texts and choose to feature meaningless events under the guise of importance, but to flat out edit transcripts of speeches is egregious! The only event mentioned of the Clinton years is "Don't ask, Don't tell." There are only 3 events listed in the 80's, one of which is Geraldine Ferraro accepting the vice presidential nomination. No offense to Ms. Ferraro, but her campaign is not among the most significant events in U.S. history. Most alarming is the outright adulteration of President Reagan's first inaugural address. The editor literally removed one of the key lines of the speech hoping the reader wouldn't notice.
If you are like me and want a book with fact, historical content, and accuracy,
PASS ON THIS BOOK!!
This book is the worst brand of biased garbage!

[Elle Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm slightly disgusted with Canterbury Classics after reading this. Not only was the foreword written by a blatant radical leftist who has no respect for the Constitution, but the fact that they removed certain parts of certain speeches...Reagan's first inaugural address?

Besides that, the selection of writings is heavily biased (i.e. Geraldine Ferraro accepting the vice presidential nomination, Hillary Clinton accepting the presidential nomination — neither of which speeches were even vaguely impactful). I want to read historically important writings, not writings that push a political narrative.

Otherwise, it's a nice, leather-bound book that includes some nice content. I'll leave it at that.

[Rhis Carson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Do not buy if you love America. As others have said this book is garbage. The introduction appears to have been written by someone with disdain for America and the book seems to push a political narrative... The selection bias is annoying (hillary's nomination acceptance speech but nothing from President Trump... They also list Howard Zinn as one of the most influential authors.) The book was also printed in China.

I'm looking forward to returning this book and finding a more patriotic substitute. Perhaps the book that a previous review mentioned: The Constitution of the United States and selected writings of the Founding Fathers.

[Bea Apodaca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone should practice their rights regularly just as much as they should study them.
It pays to know 💯🤙

[Lloyd Earickson · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the start, I should be clear: this is a review for the collection of American writings assembled by Canterbury Classics, and not a review of the US Constitution.  Nor will I be reviewing each piece in the book individually, since many of them are quite brief.  In a sense, therefore, this will be more a review of editorial and publication decisions than it is a review of the contents.  Since I spread out my reading of this book, which was a Christmas present, over several months, I had plenty of time to think about how I wanted to format this review, and I think this is the best way.

Physically, the book is a lovely addition to any patriotic bookshelf.  It contains some of the usual suspects for such a collection, which I (and probably you) have already read: the Constitution (obviously), the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, a selection from the Federalist Papers, the Gettysburg Address, et cetera.  Aside from these, it includes various speeches, laws, essays, and other documents pertaining to US history, starting with the Mayflower Compact and concluding with Hillary Clinton’s acceptance of the presidential nomination in 2016 (the book was published in 2017, for reference).

Some of the decisions about what to include are questionable.  George Washington’s farewell address, in which he warned of factionalism and relinquished the opportunity for something close to ultimate power for the second time in his career, setting a precedent for the peaceful transition, is notably absent, while the book chooses to highlight pieces like the first official baseball rules, and speeches by losing vice presidential nominees (the latter reminded me of a US history class in which I was required to memorize information about a third party candidate for president who ran from prison and whose final vote count did not amount to even a blip).  It is difficult to tell if the collectors really believe that some of the pieces included from more recent years are comparable to those from earlier times, or if they were simply attempting to achieve some level of chronological symmetry.  We are also subjected to the full text of certain laws and treaties, which can be tiresome reads, even by my standards.  As significant as the social security act may be, including its full text felt a little like filler.  Then there’s the UN Charter, which is only slightly less laborious and useless than the actual United Nations.

Preceding each piece is a brief blurb informing the reader of some context about the piece.  Especially for the lesser-known pieces, context is appreciated, though some of these blurbs are a little too light on facts and heavy on commentary for my taste.  They seem determined to make judgements on the pieces and their contexts, when, regardless of whether I agree or disagree with them, I would prefer merely the facts, and to allow the pieces to stand on their own.

Since I already read, or was reasonably familiar with, the more significant pieces included in the collection, my reading experience was more informed by the unique circumstance of bringing them together and reading them chronologically.  The impression this gives, alas, is one of decline, especially in the post WWII period, for reading recent political speeches close upon the heels of reading ones from the founding period draws a stark contrast.  I shall not quote them here, but if you read George Washington’s inaugural address and then read Barak Obama’s, you will see what I mean.  Somehow, the more recent writings can sound grander, and yet be more trivial.  I do not believe that this decline is inevitable, but it is on display here in a way that is not always obvious, and I worry that the present trajectory is not a corrective one. 

Most, if not all, of these pieces are available without paying for them, many of them with a simple internet search.  The question therefore becomes one, not of the quality or interest of the writing, but of whether it is worth spending the money on a gilt-edged leather-bound collection of them with some minor and sometimes detracting commentary?  That’s a decision that only you can make.  As for me, I’m satisfied to have it on my bookshelf, and I’m pleased with reading it.  Besides, I can never have too many copies of the Constitution.

[LibbyZally · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first thing I noticed about this book was the front and back picture of the American Flag. Notice anything, like it’s upside down and the stars are out of place. Bad editing. Anyways....Here is a collection of remarkable works of accomplishments. I did not read all, for Benjamin Franklin is a very dense writer. I will continue to read more from Frederick Douglas, for his dictations are very admirable. Of course I also read JFK on up to Madam Secretary herself, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

[Jarod Lowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good collection of writings relevant to American history, hitting most of the major points of thought that laid the foundation for my country. All of this stuff is content that was gone over in high school history classes, but it's very good practice to go back over for review now that our minds are more experienced and can read these without being worried about memorizing for a test. Reading the powerful writing of America's greatest leaders really puts in stark relief the disjointed ramblings of Trump and, to a lesser extent, Biden. I don't know if I really understood just how much the election of Trump was a misstep and terrible tumble flat on our face, until I compared his divisive, narcissistic, childlike rhetoric with the speech of the past that was intended to make progress by bringing America together. The ideas collected in this book should be ones that all Americans are familiar with inside and out if they are to have well-informed and effective opinions about their country

[Emily Norgord · Rating 2 out of 5]

The idea of this book seems to be to present the US Constitution alongside documents that give historical context to both when it was written as well as various points in US History. This reflects a commonly used tactic today that deepens political division: "I'm just giving you the facts, but draw your own conclusions". This sounds neutral and unbiased, but it overlooks how choosing which facts to present and which to ignore inevitably shapes our conclusions. This book leans into that. A curated list of "important writings" isn't neutral; rather, it explicitly frames the Constitution in a particular way while maintaining a veneer of objectivity. While I do wholeheartedly endorse studying the political context surrounding the Constitution across US History, a collection like this does serve to undermine the genuine and open engagement with the text that such study requires.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I'm glad the book contains verbiage from important documents in American history, the introduction was a bit too far left for my liking. I could tell that Ken Mondschein is pushing for progressive interpretation and ideals, especially in his writing of the Originalism and Non-originalism section of the Introduction, where he mixes his own opinion with certain big time law cases (Obergefell vs Hodges for example). I recommend skipping over the Introduction, read the actual documents themselves, and come to your own conclusion about what it's author(s) was trying to convey.

[Jim Poling · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comprehensive and detailed American History book. It tells the story of America’s history from before its founding until 2016 through substantially important historical documents. Each section gives a small amount of context about the upcoming text and then the text speaks for itself.

Some chapters are riveting, some are very boring. Chapters of speeches given can be motivational while chapters of laws past can put you to sleep.

All in all I think it’s very well done and very comprehensive. If you have any interest in American history then this book should be of interest to you.

[✨Genessa✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book mainly has the U.S. Constitution (as well as other very important documents), which demonstrates and allows us to keep our God-given rights; so how could I rate it anything less than 5 stars? Lol

[Philip Lavery · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was pretty good although I don’t know why it finished with Hillary Clinton’s nomination speech. I thought it was a bad ending to a good book.
I also wish Ron Paul’s what if speech had been included.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compilation of historical and important writings and speeches that changed America.

[Fred Chamness · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yay

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Based

[David Gallagher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bought this at Costco and mostly enjoyed it. It reads like an epistolary history of the US, which was awesome.

Overall, the collection is pretty solid - many essential works and some interesting titles I'd never heard of. I was moved by Benjamin Franklin's letters, the anti-racist stances of the Northwest Ordinance, the powerful speeches, and the UN Charter. I did skim the longer legal documents - the 30- and 45-page ones felt like filler material.

I was also really disappointed with the editing: I stopped counting after a dozen typos, including missing words. And I found the inconsistent formatting to be a distraction.

In my opinion, this isn't the strongest source for these writings.

[Kristina Moses · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book has a wonderful range of primary source documents from important political speeches to the text of laws. I'm proud to say I read it in its entirety, even though the text of some laws, like the social security act and the civil rights act are so boring xD One of my favorite parts were the speeches by FDR; I see why he was elected four times. The final selection in the book was the speech by Hilary Clinton upon accepting the Democratic nomination. It made me sad that especially in recent events, her cautions about Trump not caring for the individual people of the nation has become true.

[Isaiah Espinoza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall a strong collection of American writings, speeches and documents. The material added is more questionable near the end is more questionable but justified for its historical importance. Still strange that the “I Have a Dream” speech was omitted when the Civil Rights Act was included. It’s dry reading and reads like a bill, unlike the U.S. Constitution and the following Amendments (Bill of Rights) which uses the English language with arguably more powerful effect.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A refreshing and non political collection of historically significant documents and speeches important to learning the history of our country. To the reviewers concerned for Trump the book was published before he was elected.

[Joshua Stanley · Rating 3 out of 5]

It seems to be a biased representation of some of the important documents and speeches throughout the history of the US. The beginning and end fall flat for me and aren’t worth reading. Everything in between is okay though.

[Amanda Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent collection of America's history from original sources.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's exactly what it says it is