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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
dark
informative
medium-paced
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Standing in stark contrast to histories which give deference to governments, this text places the emphasis where it should be - with people and their movements for freedom and justice. It's refreshing that Zinn doesn't shy away from his political leanings, esp. in an era when America's Democrats are liberal only by their own self-acclimation. We all know the self made historical myths that America tells itself so it's nice to see such a famous text going against that grain while placing hope in people will fight for change.
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
I first heard of this book in one of my undergrad classes. It focused on young people’s social movements across the US and my professor said that the framework for the course was based on this book by Howard Zinn. It’s been on my to-read list since then and I finally got around to starting it last summer. I’ve been reading this book for months because of how dense it was. Like with any history book, you kind of have to go in with the mindset that it is going to be biased and that it can’t cover everything. It’s also worth noting that the author is a White male historian. With that being said, I think this book is really important because it showcases important historical moments in US history from the perspective of marginalized communities (BIPOC, immigrants, women, LGBTQ+, working class). I think Zinn did a really great job in ~700 pages of laying out how from the very beginning, the political and economic systems in the US have been in favor of wealthy and White men. Reading about the power of people’s movements and collective action to demand change across history was definitely empowering.