A review by booksrockcal
The National Museum Of American History by Shirley Abbott

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.75

I picked up this book when browsing at the library because the National Museum of American History is my favorite of the Smithsonian Museums. I am an American history nerd- I love reading about history and visiting museum and learning about the past through the objects produced in and emblematic of their time. This book did not disappoint. I was hooked by the images of colonial decorative arts (from chairs to teapots). The book covered everything from colonial times to the 20th century, with objects highlighting the American past such as First Ladies’ gowns, the first telephone, books from Jefferson’s library, sewing machines, house plans, early motor cars, the cotton gin- American history depicted through objects. The book was published in 1981, just three years after I visited the museum for the first time as a high school student awed by the actual objects that made up US History. Now I know more about what is missing - there is very little on the western US, on Native Americans or enslaved Americans or even on social or cultural history. I would love to see a more recent catalogue of the museum as I’m sure it would tell the story of a more expansive history that includes more regions and people than just those on the eastern seaboard. Knowing what was missing did not diminish my enjoyment of the book for what it is, knowing it’s a product of its time.