Remember "1776"
In 1976, the year of the Bicentennial, I was but six years old. I remember vaguely the patriotic observance, the parades, the Red, White, and Blue. Through my youth, my parents led us through the National Parks, learning of our nation's history. My education dutifully included study of our history and government, especially in high school, as well as selected readings, like The Federalist Papers in the university. Nonetheless, I have neglected serious study of the history of the American Revolution, preferring the popular films and occasional documentary. Thus, it was overdue that I dedicate some hours to David McCullough 's simply titled 1776 . Like much of history, where the final outcome remains fixed with certainty, an historian may take a slice of the history, otherwise well-known, and tease out tension, not regarded in the dominant narrative. McCullough does this exceptionally in recounting the doubts and darkness that consumed the American campaign from the end of A...