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Which ones would you recommend to a non -American, person wanting to get the basics on the origin and dynamics of the U.S .
Some kind of comprehensive but thorough book covering a variety of topics such as politics, religion, ,immigration, and various industries etc... past and present.
The primary focus of Democracy in America is an analysis of why republican representative democracy has succeeded in the United States while failing in so many other places. He seeks to apply the functional aspects of democracy in America to what he sees as the failings of democracy in his native France.
Tocqueville speculates on the future of democracy in the United States, discussing possible threats to democracy and possible dangers of democracy. These include his belief that democracy has a tendency to degenerate into "soft despotism" as well as the risk of developing a tyranny of the majority. He observed that the strong role religion played in the United States was due to its separation from the government, a separation all parties found agreeable. He contrasts this to France where there was what he perceived to be an unhealthy antagonism between democrats and the religious, which he relates to the connection between church and state.
I confess that in America I saw more than America; I sought the image of democracy itself, with its inclinations, its character, its prejudices, and its passions, in order to learn what we have to fear or hope from its progress.
No problem, Kumud. I wish more folks had some suggestions to offer.
Here is an excellent looking site with a great deal of information on American History. It appears to have a wide range of subjects that can get you started:
After you have read some of the good books on US History, I'd ask you to entertain Richard Armour's parodies. I have never laughed so hard. He wrote a parody on Shakespeare and his works, and I seem to recall another I read, It All Started with Eve. Once you have an understanding of things, like US History, you would probably understand, and laugh at, his fun versions.
I've kept this question in the back of my mind...I really couldn't think of what fits. I can't think of anything (readable) that is "comprehensive". But I have thought of a few that are good reads that tell about how we got here.
1776 by David McCullough -I haven't read this, but have heard really great things about it.
I've kept this question in the back of my mind...I really couldn't think of what fits. I can't think of anything (readable) that is "comprehensive". But I have thought of a few that are good reads that tell about how we got here.
1776 by David McCullough -I haven't read this, but have heard really great things about it.
Grapes of Wrath by Steinbeck
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
I've been thinking about it, too, but the first year I actually studied American History, I made a bet with my teacher that I could ace her class without opening the textbook. I did, too, but I ended up reading about 300 historical novels and biographies, and it would have been sooo much easier just to read the text. She was a cool teacher, though, just laughed and told me to go ahead if I thought I could do it.
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