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The American Pageant

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THE AMERICAN PAGEANT, 14th EDITION, enjoys a reputation as one of the most popular, effective, and entertaining texts in American history. The colorful anecdotes, first-person quotations, and trademark wit bring American history to life. The 14th Edition places an even greater emphasis on the global context of American history through a new feature, "Thinking Globally." Additional pedagogical features make THE AMERICAN PAGEANT accessible to chronologies in each chapter provide a context for the major periods in American history, while other features present primary sources, scholarly debates, and key historical figures for analysis. To meet the demand for a low-cost, high-quality survey text, CENGAGE ADVANTAGE THE AMERICAN PAGEANT, COMPACT 14e, offers readers the complete text in an economically priced format. All volumes feature a paperbound, two-color format that appeals to those seeking a comprehensive, trade-sized history text.

1008 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

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About the author

David Kennedy

317 books16 followers
Dave is a guidebook writer/publisher turned novelist. He began rock climbing around 1984, which was a “logical” extension of hiking, camping and backpacking since boyhood. After his first article on climbing in San Diego’s back-country was published in Rock & Ice magazine, he created the San Diego County Climbing Guide, which proved extremely popular. Next came San Diego Adventures: Classic hiking, mountain biking and rock climbing. In 2007 he completed and published a second edition of the climbing guide, which vividly detailed over 2,000 routes.

Subsequently, he embarked on a fiction-writing odyssey, producing sci-fi novels and short stories “rather unsuccessfully” in terms of publication. He finally found his proper voice in 2017 when he wrote Ricochet, an intense modern-day thriller about a young female vigilante. Upon its completion, he learned about Acorn Publishing while attending the 2018 Southern California Writers’ Conference and was signed by them shortly thereafter.

David is also an accomplished horticulturist. He became interested in tropical plants called Bromeliads in 2010, which quickly turned into a passion. He is an active member of the San Diego Bromeliad Society, and has won “Best of Show” awards in their annual show multiple times. His Tillandsia collection is considered one of the best in the region. For many years he and his wife Debbie have been chief volunteer caretakers of the San Diego Zoo’s Kent Bromeliad Garden.

Becoming a novelist is the realization of a lifelong dream. David loves the process of storytelling, of waking up each day well before dawn and diving into the art of making words come together in a way that appeals.

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5 stars
13 (23%)
4 stars
14 (25%)
3 stars
16 (29%)
2 stars
5 (9%)
1 star
7 (12%)
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
23 reviews
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June 17, 2022
I’m so glad I don’t have to read one more word of this textbook.
49 reviews1 follower
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May 5, 2024
reading this made me wish that we never left britain
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14 reviews17 followers
April 19, 2021
I mean it’s a good textbook but I had a million mental breakdowns over having to take notes on it every night.
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4 reviews
May 2, 2025
Oh, American Pageant, what an academic year we've had together. Even though I poured hours of my life into you and your over 1000 pages, I appreciate all you've taught me. Your wisdom makes me a more educated future voter, after all. Somehow, you not only taught me volumes, but you did so in a gloriously clever way. Every time you used the word "crusty" when referring to historical figures or described the founding fathers like the love interests of a YA romance novel, I cracked a small smile and perhaps even let out the occasional audible laugh. You might've fractured my sense of humor forever, but at least I found you entertaining.

Today marks the day I close the American Pageant forever, but I look forward to living its future chapters armed with centuries of knowledge and textbookish dry humor, courtesy of you.
72 reviews
June 8, 2022
A solid lesson in American history for AP U.S History class.
The only knock I can give on the book is slanting a little bit left on some of the presidents. The authors tended to prop-up the Democratic presidents and sweep some of their mistakes under the carpet while doing the opposite for Republican presidents. It wasn't too bad, but I would have preferred they take the middle ground for the sake of history.
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6 reviews
July 25, 2019
A very comprehensive yet objective review of the US history...
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32 reviews3 followers
April 8, 2020
The first book ever that made me feel more patriotic
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52 reviews2 followers
November 24, 2021
I had to read this for 2 back to back history classes my first year in college. If you read the related chapters once with average retention, you would have had no problem getting an A in that class. But this book was the first book that introduced me to sooo many concepts in which I had never been educated, and with a somewhat sassy and objective authorship, to date this is still the best history textbook I have ever read. American history is messy, frustrating, and absolutely incredible.
272 reviews1 follower
December 25, 2022
"The life we live, they dreamed of; the life they lived, we can only dream."
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14 reviews2 followers
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January 12, 2017
(Vol. 2) used as a textbook in my U.S. History II class in college
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews

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