Great Classic Books of the American Revolutionary War. Scroll Down & CLICK on the UNDERLINED TITLE to read a preview on Amazon. Enjoy!
The War of the Revolution by Christopher Ward
When The War for the Revolution was first published almost sixty five years ago, it was instantly recognized as a modern classic of American historical scholarship, as well as a masterpiece of narrative nonfiction Revolutionary War history. Today it is probably the most cited single work on the American Revolutionary War. The combination of a simple format and eloquent writing make The War of the Revolution an ideal reference for the professional historian and American history buff alike.
The Spirit of ‘Seventy-Six , published in 1958, allows readers to experience events long-entombed in textbooks. In letters, journals, diaries, official documents, and personal recollections, the timeless figures of the Revolution emerge in all their human splendor and folly to stand beside the nameless soldiers. Profusely illustrated and enhanced by cogent commentary, this book examines every aspect of the war, including the Loyalist and British views; treason and prison escapes; songs and ballads; the home front and diplomacy abroad. In short, the editors have wrought a balanced, sweeping, and compelling documentary history.
This is the second novel in Kenneth Roberts acclaimed trilogy on the American Frontier preceded by Arundel (epic journey of Benedict Arnold’s attack on Quebec) and followed by Lively Lady. Published in 1933, Roberts’s epic novel of the American Revolution, Rabble in Arms, is hailed as one of the greatest historical novels of all times. Love, treachery, ambition, and idealism motivate an unforgettable cast of characters in a magnificent novel renowned not only for the beauty and horror of its story but also for its historical accuracy. Roberts made a mark upon all future historians and novelists who followed in his footsteps. A must read!
Kenneth Roberts 1940 novel is the classic spy novel of the Revolutionary War – now made popular by a current trend popularized by the “Turn” series. “Oliver Wiswell” traces the adventures of a Yale student who is deeply loyal to the established government of the colonies. This wonderfully far-ranging novel is packed with battles, sudden flights, escapes, intrigue, massacres, romance, and exile as it follows Wiswell, a spy for Sir William Howell (Commander in Chief of the British Armies) on Long Island. With strong historical detail and vivid depictions, Roberts explores the hearts and minds of those men and women who opposed the Revolution. This is an enjoyable and must read for any serious study of the Revolutionary War.
From the year it was first published in 1960, reviewers across America hailed “Now We Are Enemies” as a masterpiece. It still remains the most complete account of the clash that changed the course of America historythe battle of Bunker Hill. It marked the emergence of an author who has become widely acknowledged as the best historian of the American Revolution writing today. The dramas appeal swiftly expanded from suspense to profoundly human dimensions with pages rich in courageand laden with heartbreak. There is only one word for such history: unforgettable.
One of if not the best depiction of New York City and its inhabitants during the lead up to and the opening salvo of the American Revolutionary War. From back cover: Published in 1972, “E.J. Kahn, Jr. says of Under the Guns: ” ‘A painstaking, illuminating re-creation of Revolutionary New York, portrayed by an artist whose manifest love for the durable old place is exceeded only by his knowledge of it. Bliven’s book could be an historical novel, were it all not so fascinatingly true.’ ” New Yorkers who strive to envision the historical streets and shops woven into a modern landscape would love this book, seeking out those gems still remaining under the towering skyscrapers.
A History of the American Revolution by John Alden
The history of the American rebellion against England, written by one of America’s preeminent eighteenth-century historians, differs from many views of the Revolution. It is not colored by excessive worship of the Founding Fathers but, instead, permeated by sympathy for all those involved in the conflict. This is a balanced history—political, military, social, constitutional—of the thirteen colonies from the French and Indian War in 1763 to Washington’s inauguration in 1789. Alden writes with insights and broad eloquence that brought to life all aspects and passions of the period.
George Washington: A Biography by Washington Irving
George Washington: A Biography by Washington Irving, was one of the first (published 1855-59) and is still one of the best. Irving felt a personal tie: when Washington was president, living in New York City, Irving’s nurse presented the infant future-writer to him for a blessing. Irving’s biography was the last work of his life, finished in the teeth of illness and depression. Here is an intimate portrait of Washington the man, from Virginia youth to colonial commander to commander-in-chief of the patriot army to first president and great guiding force of the American federation. But one cannot read Irving’s Life without marveling at the supreme art behind it, for his biography is foremost a work of literature. This new edition of the superb biography of America’s first citizen by America’s first literary artist remains as fresh and unique today as when it was penned.
Northwest Passage, published in 1937, is a timeless classic written by one of America’s finest historical novelists, Kenneth Roberts. Set during the French and Indian wars, Roberts tells the tale of the charismatic Major Rogers, of the famed “Rogers Rangers”. Rogers’ Rules of Rangering, are still used to this day by the U. S. army’s ranger corp. Under Robert’s artful pen, Rogers becomes a figure out of a Greek tragedy, crushed by his enemies and adversity. Superbly written and meticulously researched with the vernacular and colonial mannerisms, this novel remains the classic history of early American wilderness.
Youth: Johnny Trumain’s sweeping tale of redcoats and revolutionaries is as fresh today as it was when written in 1943. For decades, Esther Forbes’ brilliant characterizations has immersed readers of this turbulent era of America’s past. Forbes, a historian, wrote with detail and precision, imbuing historical events with life and passion that was often lacking in textbooks. The Boston Tea Party, Paul Revere’s ride, and the battles at Lexington and Concord were all powerfully portrayed. Forbes also showed the daily life of the working class in the colonies, illustrating the social order against which the revolutionaries fought. If never read as a youth, it is never too late to enjoy a true classic.
Howard Fast’s bestselling coming-of-age novel about one boy’s introduction to the horrors of war amid the brutal first battle of the American Revolution. On April 19, 1775, musket shots ring out over Lexington, Massachusetts. As the sun rises over the battlefield, fifteen-year-old Adam Cooper stands among the outmatched patriots, facing a line of British troops.The Battle of Lexington and Concord will be the starting point of the American Revolution. Sweeping in scope and masterful in execution, April Morning is a classic of American literature and an unforgettable story of one community’s fateful struggle for freedom.
Washington A Life by Ron Chernow
Celebrated biographer Ron Chernow provides a richly nuanced portrait of the father of our nation and the first president of the United States. With a breadth and depth matched by no other one volume biography of George Washington, this crisply paced narrative carries the reader through his adventurous early years, his heroic exploits with the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, his presiding over the Constitutional Convention, and his magnificent performance as America’s first president.
The Campaign of 1776 Around New York and Brooklyn
The Campaign of 1776 Around New York and Brooklyn. Including a New and Circumstantial Account of the Battle of Long Island and the Loss of New York. This is Henry Phelps Johnston’s classic and detailed account of the battles fought around New York in 1776. This is a reprint of the 1878 edition upon which most research by later historians was based upon. Johnston gives a detailed account of forces involved, their commanders, position prior to and during the battles including Long Island, Kip’s Bay, Harlem Heights, and White Plains. He listed a large collection of primary sources including correspondence, orders, description of battles, memoirs, and official reports. Though over the decades, some information has proven incorrect, most remain accurate and is an excellent source for research.
This is the story of the forgotten pioneers of the Mohawk Valley during the Revolutionary War. England used their long alliance with the Iroquois Nation to attack the American settlements throughout upper New York. Edmonds based his historical fictional novel on the trials of actual colonists and their hardships to survive. Here Gilbert Martin and his young wife struggled and lived and hoped. Combating hardships almost too great to endure, they helped give to America a legend that still stirs the heart. In the midst of love and hate, life and death, danger and disaster, they stuck to the acres that were theirs and fought a war without ever quite understanding it. Drums along the Mohawk has been an American classic since its original publication in 1936.
Arundel is the first of a trilogy, followed by Rabble in Arms and The Lively Lady. The revolution has started; Benedict Arnold is a trusted and valuable officer in Washington’s fledgling army; and the capture of Quebec is of tactical importance in the plans of the rebels. Arundel, a young man from northern Massachusetts, now Maine, will join Colonel Benedict Arnold in a daring and desperate slog through the wilds of Maine in the dead of winter. Roberts skillfully describes the incredible hardships these men faced in the wilderness. And at the end of their incredible endurance, they fight a pitched battle in a snowstorm. Mr. Roberts provides an entertaining, educational, thrilling, and emotionally satisfying adventure. This story is told using words, sentence structure, and idioms unique to the times. If you’ve an interest in reading historical fiction of the times surrounding the American Revolution, you cannot go wrong with Kenneth Roberts’ Arundel.
The Lively Lady by Kenneth Roberts
This is the third in Roberts’ successful trilogy of a young America. Captain Richard Nason of Arundel, Maine, is the successful commander of his family’s brig, which carries cargo to and from ports all over the world. Hence, he has no use for the talk of war with England — until he is kidnapped by a press gang and forced to serve aboard a British warship. He escapes to take revenge on his abusive captors as skipper of the privateer Lively Lady, a sloop that he names after the young, pretty, vivacious wife of dour, bigoted English nobleman Arthur Ransome, whom Nason encountered in Maine before going to war. Due to a twist of fate, Nason and his crew are captured and taken to England’s infamous Dartmoor Prison, where the American suffers hardships that last even beyond the end of the war. On a vibrant background of sailing ships and hand-to-hand combat, Roberts uses more subtle brushstrokes to portray extraordinary courage in the face of despair, unlikely friendships that endure the worst of circumstances, and unspoken love that stands the test of time.
The Hessians by Edward J. Lowell
Who were the Hessians? Why were Germans fighting in the American Revolutionary War? Why were the fighting for the British? Edward J. Lowell’s classic 1884 text on the German mercenaries in the Revolutionary War explains all of these questions as well as many others. From the princes that ruled to the troops themselves, Lowell gives a complete overview of these men that traveled to another country to fight for a cause that was not their own. These troops were involved in some of the most pivotal battles of the Revolution, from their first at Long Island, to Trenton and Saratoga. These professional soldiers were involved from the beginning of the war, and it was only on 25th November 1783, two years after the fall of Yorktown, that the last Hessians sailed to Germany. The Hessians is essential reading for anyone interested in the in the Revolutionary War. Edward J. Lowell was a historian and lawyer from the United States. He first gained interest in the German involvement in the Revolutionary Wars after a trip abroad.
The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution
Bernard Bailyn traces an intellectual history of the ideology that led up to the American Revolution (rather than a social or economic history) primarily through an examination of political pamphlets. He points to various strands of intellectual legacies (classical antiquity, Enlightenment rationalism, English common law, New England Puritans), but for him the most important was a strain of anti-authoritarian, Whig opposition political thought that originally stemmed from the period of the English Civil War and resulting Commonwealth in the 1640s-1650s. This “country” ideology was taken up two generations later in the 1720s and 1730s by opposition politicians. To the original 1967 text of what has become a classic of American historical literature, Bernard Bailyn adds a substantial essay, “Fulfillment,” as a Postscript. Here he discusses the intense, nation-wide debate on the ratification of the Constitution, stressing the continuities between that struggle over the foundations of the national government and the original principles of the Revolution.
The Creation of the American Republic
Gordon Wood charts a transformation in American politics between the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the writing of the American Constitution in 1787 based on social conflict. The political landscape started from that of “classical” republicanism” that reflected the immutable ordering of society, moved to a radical Whig reaction towards direct democracy that took place in the 1770s and early 1780s in the form of state constitution-building, and finally resulted in a more conservative Federalist reaction that emphasized government-building based on functionality and specifically tried to restrain democratic excesses through a new separation of powers. One of the half dozen most important books ever written about the American Revolution.–New York Times Book Review During the nearly two decades since its publication, this book has set the pace, furnished benchmarks, and afforded targets for many subsequent studies. If ever a work of history merited the appellation ‘modern classic,’ this is surely one.
Rag, Tag & Bobtail: Story of the Continental Army
First published in 1952, this classic by Lynn Montross is peppered with dozens of diary material giving a treasure chest of first hand accounts that shaped this tumultuous period of history. By letting the participants speak for themselves, the author has written in effect an eyewitness account of the American Revolution and its valiant army of colonials. His collaborators are the men and women – rebels and loyalists, Britons and Hessians, generals and privates, scholars and dolts and camp followers – who molded those crucial years and kept intimate records of their experiences. Hundreds of journal have been culled for the significant and colorful details which make history a human adventure. Montross provides the framework of events.
Democracy in America by Alexis de TocquevilleDemocracy in America s a firsthand sociopolitical observation of the United States written by French lawyer Alexix de Tocqueville in 1831. The author documents his travels through America and contrasts his experiences with established aristocratic systems in Western Europe. This enduring classic explores the civil institutions and unprecedented individual freedoms held dear by citizens in both free and slave states. Democracy in America continues to be a masterful study investigating the constructive and adverse consequences of democracy.
The Works of Thomas Paine includes some of his most famous writings: Age of Reason, The American Crisis, Common Sense, The Rights of Man. Thomas Paine (1737-1809) met Benjamin Franklin in London in 1774, who convinced him to emigrate to America. In 1776, he formulated his ideas on American Independence in his most famous pamphlet, Common Sense. After the war, Paine moved to England and became involved in the French Revolution. While in England, he wrote The Rights of Man, which was a defense of the French Revolution. He barely escaped an English jail, fleeing to France, as the text was critical of the British monarchy. While in France, his writings were associated with atheism. He sailed back to America on Thomas Jefferson’s invite, but was either treated with disdain, based on religious beliefs, or forgotten. His 1809 epitaph included: He had lived long, did some good, and much harm. A conclusion proven unfounded by history.
Paul Revere and the World He Lived In
This vivid account of the life and times of Paul Revere was first published in 1942 to great acclaim and a Pulitzer Prize. Only the second woman in history to win this distinction, it is ironic that it was not for this achievement that Esther Forbes became a household name, but rather for her children’s novel Johnny Tremain, winner of the Newbery Medal in 1944. While inspirations for works of art are multiple and varied, Cornelia Meigs has noted in her Critical History of Children’s Literature, it was Forbes’ work in Paul Revere that acquainted the author with the “apprentice boys of Boston and the part they played in the Revolution. Although they may have changed the tide of events many times, history has paid them neither honor nor blame and they have been lost in the crowd of ordinary unknown people for whom and by whom wars are fought. An elegant storyteller and expert historian, Edith Forbes paints a memorable portrait of American colonial history and of this most legendary of revolutionary heroes — not merely one man riding one horse on a certain lonely night of long ago, but a symbol to which his countrymen can yet turn.
An intellectual dialogue of the highest plane achieved in America, the correspondence between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson spanned half a century and embraced government, philosophy, religion, quotidiana, and family griefs and joys. First meeting as delegates to the Continental Congress in 1775, they initiated correspondence in 1777, negotiated jointly as ministers in Europe in the 1780s, and served the early Republic–each, ultimately, in its highest office. At Jefferson’s defeat of Adams for the presidency in 1800, they became estranged, and the correspondence lapses from 1801 to 1812, then is renewed until the death of both in 1826, fifty years to the day after the Declaration of Independence. Lester J. Cappon’s edition, first published in 1959 in two volumes, provides the complete correspondence between these two men and includes the correspondence between Abigail Adams and Jefferson. Many of these letters have been published in no other modern edition, nor does any other edition devote itself exclusively to the exchange between Jefferson and the Adamses.
History of the Negro Race in America
Slavery existed long before the United States of America was founded, but so did opposition to slavery. Both flourished after the founding of the country, and the anti-slavery movement was known as abolition. In 1800, George W. Williams published his history of African Americans from 1619-1800. This was one of the first comprehensive histories of Black Americans subtitled: Negroes as Slaves, As Soldiers, and as Citizens.” Mr. Williams was the first African American member of the Ohio Legislature and Judge Advocate for the state. Two volumes are combined into one in this edition.
The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution by William Nell
Published in 1855, this is the first and classic historical account of the African American important participation in the American Revolution. William Cooper Nell, a nineteenth century abolitionist, wished to reexamine our understanding of this famous war and highlight to the world the black soldiers who fought and died for the cause of American Independence. Nell exposed how in each state, from Massachusetts to Florida, African-Americans were active participants in the Revolution. Harriet Beecher Stowe, in the introduction to Nell’s work, perfectly expresses the value of services given by African-Americans. Nell’s work is a brilliant reassessment of history and wonderfully explains the contributions of African-Americans to the War of Independence.
From Bantam Classics. Originally published anonymously, The Federalist Papers first appeared in 1787 as a series of letters to New York newspapers exhorting voters to ratify the proposed Constitution of the United States. Still hotly debated, and open to often controversial interpretations, the arguments first presented here by three of America’s greatest patriots and political theorists were created during a critical moment in our nation’s history, providing readers with a running ideological commentary on the crucial issues facing democracy. Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Hay wrote a series of 85 articles and essays explaining their reasons to support the constitution. Reading these Federalist Papers, one will encounter very interesting issues such as Hamilton’s opposition to including the Bill of Rights in the Constitution. He also supported the formation of a Union largely because of the economic benefit to the states. The Federalist Papers are not just a series of articles studied by students of history. Their contents have been used as a reference in many US Supreme Court decisions furthering the influence of this historical work to this day.
The War of American Independence by Don Higginbotham
1971 Classic, this is a broad, accomplished study of the conduct of the War of Independence, principally from the American side. The chapters dealing with campaigns and battles proper are selective and compressed, from the British victory at Breed’s Hill to the final rebel victories in the South; the fighting on the frontiers and the seas is also covered, along with military codes, recruitment and conscription, weapons and mutinies. Higginbotham makes an exemplary effort to inform us of past judgments and recent findings about, e.g. Washington’s military stature. he never bogs down in the already-familiar (Benedict Arnold, say) unless he has something new to say (the Delaware crossing, John Paul Jones’ inflated feats). Altogether a fine work; it will interest specialists by complementing the currently dominant emphasis on the social history of the Revolution, while converting some general readers into buffs.
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
Alexander Hamilton is biographical account of the life of American Founding Father, Alexander Hamilton, by Ron Chernow. Not only does Chernow provide an account of Hamilton’s life, but he provides analysis for the reader along the way. This acclaimed biography, which inspired the award-winning hip-hop musical, salvages the reputation of a Founding Father. A mammoth work of research, Alexander Hamilton charted the course of Hamilton’s dazzling career and the dark controversies that accompanied it. Chernow disentangles Hamilton’s life from the enduring political legend concocted by his opponents, who demonized him as a “closet monarchist” and wannabe Caesar. As Chernow notes: “If Jefferson provided the essential poetry of American political discourse, Hamilton established the prose of American statecraft.” Though littered with minor errors and inconsistencies, it is a fine read for one to explore the intricate life of truly an amazing individual.
George Washington: The Indispensable Man by James Flexner
After more than two decades, this dramatic and concise single-volume distillation of James Thomas Flexner’s definitive four-volume biography “George Washington,” which received a Pulitzer Prize citation and a National Book Award for the fourth volume, has itself become an American classic. Now in a new trade paperback edition, this masterful work explores the Father of Our Country – sometimes an unpopular hero, a man of great contradictions, but always a towering historical figure, who remains, as Flexner writes in these pages, “a fallible human being made of flesh and blood and spirit – not a statue of marble and wood… a great and good man.” The author unflinchingly paints a portrait of Washington: slave owner, brave leader, man of passion, reluctant politician, and fierce general.
The Underground Railroad: From Slavery to Freedom
First published in 1898, this comprehensive history was the first documented survey of a system that helped fugitive slaves escape from areas in the antebellum South to regions as far north as Canada. Comprising fifty years of research, the text includes interviews and excerpts from diaries, letters, biographies, memoirs, speeches, and a large number of other firsthand accounts. Together, they shed much light on the origins of a system that provided aid to runaway slaves, including the degree of formal organization within the movement, methods of procedure, geographical range, leadership roles, the effectiveness of Canadian settlements, and the attitudes of courts and communities toward former slaves. Invaluable for its unbiased, literate treatment, this carefully researched study will be an excellent resource for instructors and students of African-American history, and engrossing literature for readers interested in the plight of fugitive slaves in the pre-Civil War era.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
Portions of Harriet Jacobs’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl first appeared serially in 1861 in the New York Tribune; however publication ceased before the completion of the narrative due to its being deemed as too shocking for the average newspaper reader of the day. Harriet Jacobs wrote under the pseudonym of Linda Brent because, as an escaped slave, having her identity revealed would have jeopardized her freedom under the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. One of the first of the slave narratives, Jacobs’s work was a passionate appeal to white women living in the Northern United States to enlighten themselves as to the evils of slavery. Jacobs describes her life from a young age living as a slave in North Carolina. What follows is a harrowing narrative of sexual abuse and fight for survival. While the work was almost immediately overshadowed by the start of the American Civil War it has since found its place as one of the most important of all the slave narratives distinguishing itself as one of the first from the female perspective.
Black Reconstruction in America
Published in 1935, this pioneering work is the study of the role of Black Americans during Reconstruction by the most influential Black intellectual of his time. The pioneering work was the first full-length study of the role black Americans played in the crucial period after the Civil War, when the slaves had been freed and the attempt was made to reconstruct American society. Hailed at the time, Black Reconstruction in America 1860–1880 has justly been called a classic.