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everdee19's review
4.0
A bit slow to come together but overall, her voice in telling the story is so delightful, it doesn't matter.
mcguffin's review
4.0
The book has a lot of information not contained in others on the topic, BUT it does that by going on multiple tangents and moving in and out of chronological order often. Good book but don't pick this up as your first read on the Revolution.
me300k_h1st's review
adventurous
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Tuchman brings many details of international perspectives on the US War of Independence not normally seen in books on that topic. Her writing, her personal political shrewdness, and her sense of adventure are brilliant. If you find yourself curious about the lives of sailors after this book, read Sons of the Waves by Stephen Taylor and then Floating Coast by Bathsheba Demuth.
expendablemudge's review
3.0
Rating: 3.75* of five
The American Revolution is so often romanticized and distorted by the political needs of Government and Policy that its reality, a ragtag rebellion of seditious wealthy men subsidized by the long-term enemies of England, gets completely lost. Tuchman, in her trademark popular-narrative, chatty style, reminds us that, had things gone a different way, we'd be *horrified* at the foolhardy yahoos who thought they could break the safe, profitable cocoon of Empire.
It's why I enjoy her books. She doesn't stint on facts, but she doesn't stint on personalities and ideas either. She has an eye for the telling detail, and she's not afraid to gore anyone's ox.
Easy reading, informative, and surprising. What more can a non-academic hist'ry reader ask for?
The American Revolution is so often romanticized and distorted by the political needs of Government and Policy that its reality, a ragtag rebellion of seditious wealthy men subsidized by the long-term enemies of England, gets completely lost. Tuchman, in her trademark popular-narrative, chatty style, reminds us that, had things gone a different way, we'd be *horrified* at the foolhardy yahoos who thought they could break the safe, profitable cocoon of Empire.
It's why I enjoy her books. She doesn't stint on facts, but she doesn't stint on personalities and ideas either. She has an eye for the telling detail, and she's not afraid to gore anyone's ox.
Easy reading, informative, and surprising. What more can a non-academic hist'ry reader ask for?
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