America's Beginnings: The Dramatic Events that Shaped a Nation's Character

by Tony Williams

At a time when surveys reveal that Americans know less and less about our past, Tony Williams provides entertaining and informative descriptions of 50 of the most important and dramatic events from the colonial and Revolutionary period―some known and some forgotten―from the Mayflower Compact to the Annapolis Convention. Published in association with The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, America's Beginnings takes the reader throughout the American colonies and introduces many leading figures, from John Smith and John Winthrop to the Founding Fathers. Along the way, Williams examines the principles that led colonists to come to America and succeeding generations to become a free and independent nation. Read individually or from cover to cover, these stories illuminate the founding principles and heroic struggles that established the country and shaped the American character.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

208 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2010

About the author

Tony Williams is the author of six books including the brief and engaging "Hamilton: An American Biography" (Rowman Littlefield) and "Washington & Hamilton: The Alliance that Created America," (Sourcebooks,2015), co-authored with Stephen F. Knott.

He has also written "America's Beginnings: The Dramatic Events that Shaped a Nation's Character,"(2011), "The Jamestown Experiment:The Remarkable Story of the Enterprising Colony and the Unexpected Results that Shaped America"(2011),"Pox and the Covenant: Franklin, Mather, and the Epidemic that Changed America's Destiny"(2010), and, "Hurricane of Independence: The Untold Story of the Deadly Storm at the Deciding Moment of the American Revolution"(2008)

He is a Senior Teaching Fellow at the Bill of Rights Institute and holds history degrees from Syracuse University and Ohio State University He taught history for fifteen years and was a fellow at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. He lives with his family in Williamsburg, VA. He blogs regularly at www.wjmi.org and www.constitutingamerica.org

He has lectured across the country including Colonial Williamsburg, the Virginia Festival of the Book, the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Department of Education, National Park Service Revolutionary War Battlesites, NASA, several universities and countless civics and history groups. He appeared as a commentator on Bill O'Reilly's "Legends & Lies: The Patriots" and has appeared several times on C-SPAN's Book TV.

He can be reached for speaking engagements by contacting him at Twitter @TWilliamsAuthor

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains 50 topics about America's early history told in the format of information-packed vignettes. I feel that this book would be good for someone who quickly wants a good summary about a given event, say the Boston Tea Party or Shays' Rebellion, as this book provides a little bit of background leading up to the event itself and the result of each event, all within about three to four pages per story. Beware of a few typos, though, but nothing major.