The Sixties

by Terry H. Anderson

In The Sixties, Terry Anderson tackles the question of why American experienced a full decade of tumult & change, whose reverberations & consequences are still being felt in America today. Always appreciated for its brevity, wit & captivating style, The Sixties enters its 3rd edition with expanded coverage of the most interesting & important events, people & movements of the Sixties.
"Anderson defines the 1960s' movement as a loose, ever-shifting coalition of social activists including civil rights & Vietnam War protesters, feminists, students, ecologists & hippies. In his analysis, the movement was generally leaderless & was not defined by new-left philosophy; rather, its members were motivated by the old-fashioned American pragmatism that drove protesters during other reform eras--the Revolution, Jacksonian democracy, the populist & progressive era & the New Deal. Far from being a failure, as critics contend, the movement, in Anderson's estimate, cracked a rigid Cold War culture, forced campus & educational reform, sped the passage of civil rights legislation, revolutionized the status of women & influenced mainstream politics, which coopted many of its ideas about citizen & community empowerment. Professor of history at Texas A&M University, Anderson draws heavily on interviews, underground newspapers, leaflets & participants' memoirs to create a vivid newsreel. His sweeping study is a valuable, refreshingly unbiased reassessment of the '60s legacy."--Publishers Weekly

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Sociology, School

240 pages, Paperback

First published August 3, 2011

Reviews

[Sarah | sarahssharedshelf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably one of the best textbooks I read so far for undergrad! It's very interesting, informative, and a very easy read!

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been thoroughly convinced to never return to America 1960-1973. At least the book is short and succinct.

[Juan Molina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book when I took Professor Anderson's US After WWII course. Lots of really interesting tidbits and factoids that put things in perspective.

[Abby Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

read this for class
there is a really interesting part of this book I had to deeply examine for class about the role of music specifically rock that influenced both the home front and the soldiers in vietnam that really helped me understand the difference between sound and lyric and how someone can be influenced by one or the other or both. i really liked this book

[Campbell Stites · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this for my history after WWII class. I think I’d give it a 3.5. It’s not horrible but definitely a more of a textbook type of history which is what I expected. the author covered everything you would want to know from the Sixties, so I’m satisfied. What a crazy time to be alive, I mean night and day from the 50s. Just insane.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Anderson paints Kennedy in too nostalgic of a light for my personal tastes. Almost a hapless "give the kid a break" sense that I'm just not about. I enjoyed and recommend America Divided instead.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

After finishing the book, I felt that Anderson really knew what he was writing about, especially since he remembers so many of the events. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to know the whole truth of what had taken place during this famous (infamous?) decade, which are not really discussed in a high school US history class, like the gay movement and the after effects of the events that had taken place during that decade.

[Stacey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Annoying. Interesting, but very annoying to read. I'm just not a history fanatic.

[Myriam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was okay... for a school manual!

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent book. An interesting look into what caused The Sixties, and what some effects were. A must read.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a pleasure having Dr. Anderson as my professor. Truly he is an American historian and scholar.