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duparker's review against another edition
4.0
Woodward has a great strength in that he can tell the political tale we have heard 8 times or 800 times and his skill in reframing what we know is so strong that you lean into hear what he has to say. I feel that you need to read American Nations before you read this, though he does summarize its basis at times in this book. Together they really tell quite the tale and describe a culture we all can relate to once it is pointed out to you.
tofupup's review against another edition
3.0
I want to learn more about the "nations" that the US is currently comprised of. I'm not 100% sold on the idea, but there may be some value in understanding the cultural differences.
cdbaker's review
5.0
Really interesting. I suspect I'm going to read this (or parts of it) with Junior Core this Fall.
dixiet's review against another edition
5.0
This, along with his American Nations, should be required reading for every American. There should be AN/AC discussion groups everywhere.
kbellows27's review against another edition
4.0
4.25 stars for this very interesting read. Fascinating concept explaining the long standing political and cultural divisions in the United States. I do think it’s helpful to have read, 11 Nations, before this one as it will give you the context for the argument. Very interesting and readable! Highly recommend.
fallona's review
4.0
This is a fascinating book that looks at the interplay between regional and political identity. It is almost certainly best read after Woodard's American Nations, as it builds on the ideas he develops there. Woodard is far from the only writer to approach the question of American regionalism, but his work is more accessible than most. He's an engaging writer, and his work seems to be well-researched. He raises interesting points about the ways regional identities have played into American political history.
As with American Nations, Woodard's sympathies and his own regional affiliation are visible. Some readers may find this grating. Woodard is a Mainer--a product of what he defines as Yankeedom (though I do highly recommend Woodard's Lobster Coast for a more nuanced portrait of the cultural history and landscape of at least the coastal portion of Maine, and perhaps a slightly clearer image of where Woodard himself comes from). Whether you agree with him or not, it is interesting to consider how his own definition of his native region plays into his ideas and how he writes about them.
As with American Nations, Woodard's sympathies and his own regional affiliation are visible. Some readers may find this grating. Woodard is a Mainer--a product of what he defines as Yankeedom (though I do highly recommend Woodard's Lobster Coast for a more nuanced portrait of the cultural history and landscape of at least the coastal portion of Maine, and perhaps a slightly clearer image of where Woodard himself comes from). Whether you agree with him or not, it is interesting to consider how his own definition of his native region plays into his ideas and how he writes about them.
jcovey's review
4.0
Phenomenal when it delves into history from the 30s to the present. Since this period is covered swiftly in American Nations and not at all in Union, and his lens on history cuts with customary incisiveness. Slightly weakened by the rest of the book being a cribnotes of American Nations and prelude to Union, before concluding with a call to reasonableness that while certainly correct seems overwhelmingly optimistic.
bobbo49's review against another edition
4.0
A very good - complex and thought-provoking - read for the present moment in our fractured America. Written before the 2016 election, with a forward written just after, the book looks at the perspectives at the heart of our current divide, between a socio-political orientation toward either the individual or the community. With chapters going through analyses of every period of American history, Woodard suggests that we are a conglomeration of 11 different geo-political/cultural nations, with the starkest extremes in the Deep South (extreme individualists) and Yankeedom (extreme communalists), and everything in between (such as Appalachia, individualists but community-oriented, or the Left Coast, communalists but also individual-oriented). In light of our current politics, Woodard provides some good insights into how we got here - and how the divide has played out through our history - as well as some hopeful words (again, written in 2016, and clearly from the perspective of a communitarian) about how we can come together in most of the 11 districts in a manner that narrows the issues that divide us and allows us to preserve our liberal democracy experiment.
donzhivago's review against another edition
4.0
Really good, especially the last 1/4 where Woodard goes, in depth, into how the right wing have destroyed the nation over the last few decades. This acts as an excellent quasi-sequal to American Nations, as it explores collectivism vs. individualism in American history.